Though We're Strangers Til Now
by musicalmaniac09
Summary: This is the sequel to my first Laby fanfic The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back... Toby suddenly dies and his dying wish to Sarah is that she take his only daughter, Rory, a niece that Sarah has never known...
1. Ch1: Don't Tell Me Truth Hurts

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Mwah ha ha haaaaa! I'm back to do a sequel to my fanfic _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_… I decided to do a sequel after getting so many good reviews and I couple requests for a sequel… It's been taking me a while to come up with a really good storyline, and I think I've finally thought up enough of one to run with it… So I'm really just writing this off the top of my head as it comes to me…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter One: _Don't Tell Me Truth Hurts, Little Girl… Cause It Hurts Like Hell…_

Sarah tossed and turned as she slept within Jareth's arms. She eventually moved herself out of Jareth's reach as she continued to stir restlessly, lost with in her dream. She could see a man… A man that had familiar blue eyes and silky blonde hair with an adorable round face… He was with a pretty woman with fiery red hair and bright green eyes… They both looked unhappy for some reason…

Sarah rolled around as she saw a young girl that couldn't be more than 13 or 14 years old… The image of the girl was very vague; Sarah made out what she believed was red hair and a round face, just like the man's… The girl was obviously fighting with the man and woman, yelling at them with tears streaming down her face… The man and woman were yelling at her too, but Sarah could see, as their images were more distinct than the young girl's, a sadness in their eyes…

The man and woman suddenly disappeared and Sarah watched the girl fall to the ground and sob, her face in her hands… She saw the man and woman hurrying to a car in a downpour of rain and as they began driving, Sarah gasped as a car swerved accidentally in the rain and crashed into the man and woman's car.

Sarah screamed as she bolted upright in bed. She gasped for breath as she suddenly felt sharp and intense pain as if she was the one in the car. Jareth woke at Sarah's scream and was by her side, trying to calm her.

"Sarah… Sarah… It's alright… I'm here…" He said soothingly, holding Sarah firmly but gently, stroking her shoulder. Sarah grabbed onto Jareth, burying her face into his chest.

"Oh, Jareth… It was awful…" Sarah sobbed into his chest.

"Was it about the man and woman again?" He asked, genuinely concerned, trying to help Sarah sort through her emotion.

Sarah nodded into Jareth's chest and cried, "They were fighting with the young girl again… but this time, after they fought, the man and woman left in a car in a downpour and they were in a car crash… They're dying…"

Jareth rubbed Sarah's back comfortingly and tried to reason with Sarah's nightmare, "Sarah we don't even know if these people are real… Even if they were real, how are you so certain they're dying? You woke up before you could see the outcome, didn't you? How can you know for sure they aren't just injured or wounded?"

Sarah looked up into Jareth's face, her own face reddened from sobbing and tear-streaked, and said with a serious tone, "I know they're dying from the feeling I got… It was as if _I_ was in car crash, Jareth…"

Jareth sighed, contemplating what Sarah had told him about her latest nightmare. Sarah had been having these kinds of nightmares about a man and woman for a couple months and the young girl had only just appeared in the nightmares recently. Gryphön suggested that it may be Sarah's mind trying to manifest her fears of what may happen later on in Sarah and Jareth's relationship. The man and woman seemed distant from each other, which seemed to be caused by a feud they had between themselves and the young girl, who was their apparent child. Gryphön figured Sarah fears that a child that she and Jareth may have might bring them apart, so she fears having a child.

Sarah knew, however, that the man and woman were not depicting her and Jareth in the future; neither was the young girl depicting their possible child. The man, woman and young girl were _real_, they were real people that existed. And Sarah was more then positive that the man and woman were becoming closer and closer to becoming _non_existent. She was still confused at why she was having such premonitions of this particular couple and family.

"Jareth… They're real… This man and woman are real people… I know in the core of my soul that they are dying and that little girl is all alone now… I _must_ know who they are… I have a feeling a know who the man is… He seems so familiar somehow… I _must_ find out who he is…" Sarah urged Jareth.

Jareth sighed as slipped away from Sarah and quickly put on a long and flowing robe and handed Sarah her own robe. Sarah got out of bed as well and slipped on her robe and faced Jareth.

"Alright… If this man and woman really do exist, just focus on the clearest image of them that you can remember…" Jareth said, conjuring a crystal then taking both of Sarah's hands and placing them around the crystal and his hands around hers.

"What are we doing?" Sarah asked, confused.

"When you think about this man and woman, I'll focus my magic on taking us to where this couple is, if they truly exist…" He said simply, "…Wherever we appear, though, we will be invisible and undetectable to anyone…"

Sarah nodded, understanding the _A Christmas Carol_-like concept, and said, "Alright…"

Jareth looked into Sarah's eyes, ready for the madness to come to an end, "Are you ready?"

Sarah took a deep breath, "Yes…" She closed her eyes as she pictured the man and woman clearly in her mind. Jareth closed his eyes as well as he focused his energy and magic on the people Sarah was focusing on. He opened his eyes, expecting to still be in their bedroom but was shocked as he looked around, seeing they were in a hospital.

Sarah opened her eyes and was baffled as she saw where they were. Before she could open her mouth to question it, a team of paramedics briskly rushed past her, pushing the man and woman she had seen in her dream on wheeled stretchers. Sarah quickly followed after them, recognizing the man and woman, with Jareth following behind her.

"That's them…" Sarah called over her shoulder to Jareth. The paramedics were talking furiously, giving each other orders and hurrying to help the couple. Sarah and Jareth watched silently as the paramedics moved the couple to beds and began doing various things in what was an obviously vain attempt to save the man and woman. A woman with dirty blonde hair tied in a bun that was obviously a doctor (Jareth could see Dr. Jefferson on her hospital I.D. badge) approached asked one of the paramedics, "What have we got?"

"Male and female, auto accident… Car swerved into them in the rain… The male has already lost an excessive amount of blood while the female has suffered injuries to her spinal column and has excessive internal bleeding…"

Dr. Jefferson noticed the wedding rings on their fingers and asked, "Are they married?"

The paramedic nodded as he continued, "We were able to recover the man's wallet and the woman's purse from the wreckage…" He took two licenses out of his pocket and read aloud, "One Delilah Macayle-Williams and one Toby Williams…"

Sarah gasped and Jareth held her as she began to stagger backwards upon hearing Toby's name.

"There's nothing we can do for them… We're losing both of them pretty fast…" the paramedic sadly. All the specialists looked to the woman's heart monitor as they heard a long, shrill beep and Sarah and Jareth looked and saw Delilah's heart beat turn to a flatline. Toby took a deep stuttering breath as if sensing his wife's passing. Sarah felt herself sobbing as she broke away from Jareth and rushed to Toby's side, not caring he couldn't see her or hear her.

"Toby… Toby! It's me, Sarah! Hold on, Toby… You can't leave Toby! No, you're a fighter, Toby… Fight, Toby! Don't give in!" Sarah sobbed.

Toby suddenly turned his head ever so slightly towards Sarah as if he could sense her, and whispered faintly, "…..Sarah…..Sarah……Sarah….."

Sarah's eyes widened as she heard Toby utter her name. She heard Jareth, "No… It's not possible… No one can hear us or see us…"

Sarah leaned closer to Toby, not caring about what Jareth said was supposed to happen. "I'm here, Toby… I'm right here… I'm right here with you… I'm not going to leave you…"

Toby's breathing became more and more shallow as Sarah heard him whispering, "……Sarah…..take……Rory…."

"Rory…? Who's Rory, Toby? I don't know any Rory…" Sarah shook her head, confused.

Toby's breathing lessened and lessened as Sarah strained to hear, "….Your……niece…..Rory…….my……..daughter……"

Sarah's eyes widened as she came upon the realization of the young girl's identity. "My niece… She's _my_ niece, Toby? You want me to take Rory?"

Toby nodded ever so slightly as he breathed, "…….Love……her……Sarah…..Tell…..her……we……love…..her……"

Sarah felt the tears streaming down her face as she leaned closer and closer to Toby, wanting to be able to hold onto him as he left, but knowing she was unable to touch him. "I will, Toby. I'll tell her… I'll tell her how much you and Delilah love her…"

Sarah couldn't be certain, but she thought she saw a smile on the corners of Toby's lips as he breathed, "……I…….love……you……" Toby let out one last breath and Sarah could hear the haunting beep of the flatline on his monitor. As Sarah looked into his face, began to sob uncontrollably as she began to hyperventilate. Jareth came to her and held onto her as the technician said sadly, "We've lost them…"

Sarah gripped onto Jareth but kept her face close to Toby's as she cried, "I love you too, Toby… I love you so much… I love you, Toby… I love you…." She eventually sank down into Jareth arms as she cried beside her brother and sister-in-law's bodies, unnoticed by the doctors and paramedics that bustled and hurried around them.

Author's Note: So how's that for an introduction? I wanted Sarah and Toby's reunion to be bittersweet: he admits how he still loves Sarah, but dies upon her finally hearing it. And in this, the truth really does "hurt like hell"…Plus I had to lay the stage for the urgent conflict over Rory's custody… She is after all an orphan now… And now Sarah and Jareth know that Toby's dying wish was for Rory to be with Sarah, and Sarah's never even met her before… Alright, I'll go before I blow the entire story right now… Got to go get some sleep… I can't keep up such a good story if I stay up until 5 in the morning all the time! More to come…


	2. Ch2: Though We're Strangers Til Now

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Okay, after an especially tough intense intro chapter, I really want to bring some happiness to the story… I originally planned for Rory and Sarah meeting more towards the end of the story, but after rereading Chapter One, I decided I'll have them unite now, but I'll do it from Rory's point of view…

I'll probably be switching to different characters' point of views throughout the story now, but for the most part between Rory, Sarah, and Jareth. You're probably thinking, "Of course you'll be switching from Rory and Sarah's point of views, this story is about them meeting… How big is Jareth's roll going to be in Rory's custody, though?" Aha, now see that's the thing… Sarah's been in the Underground for nearly 25 years now and… well, let's just say that Rory and Jareth don't really mesh…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Two: _Though We're Strangers Till Now…_

Rory sat on the windowsill of her small room looking out at the rain that was pouring down the window and the lightening that flashed, listening to the thunder that would rumble softly. _I hate being in this tiny little room… I want to be in my own room…_ She thought angrily, but then tears welled up in her eyes as she realized she could never be in her own room again. She'd never be able to leave this tiny, little room in her foster family's house… her parents were dead. She was an orphan.

The worse thing about it though, was Rory knew she should be dead just like her parents. Her foster parents gasped and were horrified when she told them that, but Rory knew the truth. The night her parents died in the car crash was the night she was supposed to go on vacation with her parents.

They were all packed up and ready to go, but she decided to fight with them about her aunt. So they went back and forth yelling until Rory yelled she wasn't going to go anywhere with people that kept secrets from her and her parents decided to leave without her.

She was so sure that they would turn around and come back, just like they always did. But then an hour passed, then another, and another… Rory waited anxiously for her parents to return, but they didn't. Then the phone rang. She ran to answer it, hoping it was them; she didn't care if it was an apology phone call or an angry one, she just wanted to hear from them.

"Is this Lorelei Williams?" She heard a woman on the phone ask.

"That depends… Who is this?" Rory answered suspiciously (as she always is of strangers).

"This is Dr. Miranda Jefferson, I'm calling from the Henson Medicinal Center… A Delilah Macayle-Williams and a Toby Williams were admitted here a few hours ago…"

Rory sank to the ground, clutching to the phone and clutching on her last bit of hope.

"I'm very sorry to inform you that they both passed away… They had been in a serious car accident, and we lost them… I'm very sorry for your lo—"

Rory did not hear the rest of Dr. Jefferson's empty pity and commiseration for she had dropped the phone and begun to sob. She soon heard a dial tone from the phone, Dr. Jefferson had given up. She began to sob heavily as all of her built up emotions flooded out of her and combined with her anxiety and fear that she had recently been feeling.

It all seemed so surreal… _It can't be true…_ Rory decided. She half expected to suddenly wake, sitting in her bed, everything just a horrible dream that wasn't real. But soon Child Services came to collect her and Rory found her self trapped in a horrible and traumatic nightmare she couldn't wake herself up from.

Rory got up from the window sill, tucking her long, fiery red hair into her black hoodie and pulled the strings around her face, sinking into the warmth, trying to rid herself of the chill she'd felt as she remembered that awful night. She rubbed her thighs anxiously as she sat Indian-style in the middle of her floor. Her normally comforting favorite jeans were feeling rather worn and different to Rory; just like she felt.

She was by no means a very preppy girl before her parents died, but after she was put in this foster home, she clamed up, shying away from the world she no longer felt a part of. She wasn't gothic by any means either, but she was haunted by a forbidding depression that she could not break herself from and she continued to wear black and other dark colors, mourning her parents. Much to her foster parents' dismay, at that. Even though she's only been with them for 3 weeks, it's felt like an eternity.

Rory pulled the edges of her hoodie sleeves to her fingertips and began to sift through a stack of papers that were scattered around her floor. Since she'd turned 13, she had begun to compile as much information she could find about her; Sarah, her aunt. Rory grew up without the huge families that her friends had. All her friends had grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. Her mother's parents had died when her mother was in high school and her mother's only brother had died unmarried, child-less, and unexpectedly just before Rory was born.

Her other grandfather had died when her father was just a little boy and Grandma Karen died when Rory was 4 or 5 years old. Rory could only remember her faintly if anything at all. She saw her all the time, but she only knew the woman for 5 years, and most of those years she couldn't remember anyway! That left her father's only sister; his half-sister, Sarah. Her father never mentioned Sarah and Rory was always curious about her aunt, but never asked Toby, unsure of his reaction.

When she turned 13, she finally mustered up the courage to ask him, and he had responded, "Why do you care about her? Have you ever heard from her? What does it matter?" His defensive and angry response shocked Rory. Out of the both of her parents, her father was the kindest and the most broad-minded.

Of course she loved her mother, but she had more of a connection with her father. He was always the one to build forts in between the furniture when it rained or stay up late with her, telling her stories; stories of kings and goblins and magic. He told her the stories as if he had experienced them himself with vivid descriptions and lively enthusiasm. And all of the stories, for some reason, included one female heroine.

After his defensiveness and his unwillingness to tell her about her aunt, Rory decided to find out about her herself. Rory was shocked to find out when she began investigating: there wasn't much to learn about Sarah. Apparently she'd gone to Julliard, but she dropped out in her Junior year, when Rory's grandfather died she was able to figure out. Then two years later, she just vanished. Into thin air.

She poured through state records, imagining that she'd moved to a different city. When she found no record of any "Sarah Lynn Williams" in the state, she searched for her in any other state: she found no record of her anywhere. She hypothesized that Sarah could have left the country, but the more she looked, the less and less she was able to find of her. Sarah had literally vanished off the face of the earth.

She considered that Sarah might have died, but she was not sure since Toby said, "Have you ever heard from her?", implying that Sarah might still be alive but does not keep in contact with him. For argument's sake, Rory checked every death record there was to check. She found that her grandmother had filed a missing person's report for her, but she was never found. She was presumed dead, but no body was ever recovered.

Rory was so sure that Sarah was still out there somewhere and she was determined to find her. She was a part of her and a part of her father. She knew she was still a part of her father, because while she was reading the main book that her father would read her stories from, she saw written in the inside cover, "**Sarah Williams**". If Sarah really meant nothing to him, Toby would not have kept a book that Sarah had obviously treasured to much. Rory knew Sarah treasured the book as it had little notes in her handwriting written in the margins and at the tops and bottoms of pages and there were certain sections and lines circled.

As Rory's eyes flew over the papers scattered around her, she shifted for a moment and stared out into space and began to consider. _It always seemed like Dad's stories were based off of that book… but why?_ She suddenly moved to her bed, crouched down on the floor and reached under her bed, pulling out a wooden box, ornately decorated with carvings. She opened it, revealing her most treasured items.

She fingered the last few items she had left of her parents: her mother's locket, her father's watch, her mother's wedding ring. The courts gave her these little tokens at her request. She lifted the little shelf that held the cherished valuables. Under the little shelf was an assortment of pictures. Rory felt tears welling up in her eyes as she saw her parents' happy and smiling faces looking up at her. She noticed the only picture she had of Sarah. She was swinging her father on a swing, he was about 5 and she was 16. Rory though Sarah was absolutely beautiful, with ivory skin, long, pin-straight dark-brown hair and a lovely round face with pale green eyes.

Rory sifted through them, pausing at a picture of the three of them together. Rory remembered, it was her 9th birthday, she was sitting in her father's lap after blowing out the candles on her cake. His arms were wrapped around her waist holding her hands and her mother was hugging her from behind, wrapping her arms around Rory's shoulders. The three of them were looking at the camera, smiling and happy.

Rory wiped away her tears quickly and moved the picture aside and pulled out a book that was buried underneath the pictures. Rory ran her hands over the red leather of the small book. In the flash of lightening, in gold letters stamped in the leather, the words "**The Labyrinth**" could be seen on the cover of the small but elaborate book. Rory began to flip through the book, feeling connected not only to Sarah, but to her father as well. Even as she read Sarah's sprawled handwriting, she could hear her father's voice in her head telling her the words that she new only too well…

"_**Through dangers untold… and hardships unnumbered… I have fought my way here to the castle… beyond the Goblin City… to take back the child that you have stolen…"**_

Rory felt herself choking back sobs as she thought about her father reading the very words to her when she was a small child, her hanging on to his every word. He was always there to tell her a story when she was blue, enchanting her with stories of kings, goblins and magic. Rory's sadness soon turned to anger as she realized that magic that she loved so much had died with her father. She could never get that back.

_And now I'm left to rot in this horrible foster home where nobody understands what I'm going through or what I'm feeling… I'm alone… Completely alone…_ Rory suddenly threw the book across the room and she could see it in the flashes of lightening lying on the floor helpless and abandoned; just like her.

"Why couldn't I have died with them! Why couldn't I have just died with them, instead of living alone with no one in the world to care about me?" Rory asked aloud, angry hot tears streaming down her face.

"The courts and my foster family don't give a damn about me… Nobody gives a damn about this poor little girl that lost her parents and has not a family member in the world…" She cried angrily. She began to sob, releasing all her built up anger and frustration.

When she had calmed down more, she crawled across the room on her hands and knees to the book. She sat down by it and picked it up and cradled it tenderly, stroking the soft cover. Wanting to feel closer to her father, like she had felt before, she opened the pages again. As her eyes flew over the words, she suddenly began to think. _Dad always said that "Sometimes the things that we believe in the most are the things we least expect to be real…"… he always made the stories seem so real… what if they are real?_

Rory shook her head as she laughed to herself. _Oh, right… goblins are real and the Goblin King and the Labyrinth are real… _Rory sighed, as she thought, _Dad, you're wrong… Just because we believe in something doesn't make it real… But then… what if I **want** it to be real? What if I **decide** that it's real?_

Rory rose up into a more comfortable position as she read over the words, "**_But what no one knew was that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with the girl… And he had given her certain powers… So one night, when the baby had been particularly cruel to her… She called on the goblins for help…"_**

If any of it was even real, Rory doubted that the King of the Goblins had fallen in love with her and she doubted even more that he had given her any powers… Still, she figured that life had been particularly cruel to her, so she decided to call on the goblins for help… It was worth a shot…

Rory took a deep breath as she recited clearly and distinctly, "I wish the goblins would come and take me away… right now!"

The few, dim lights that Rory had had on suddenly flickered out. She glanced around as especially loud roll of thunder clapped and lightening flashed in her window. She heard this weird inhuman cackling around her and she rose off of the ground, clutching the book.

Her window suddenly flew open and a big gust of wind flew through it, blowing her papers all about. Rory dashed to try and retrieve them and was suddenly shocked to realize that they were blowing around her. _What the hell is going on?_ She thought, frantically. They circled in closer to her to the point that Rory put her hands up to shield her face. She felt the wind diminish and she heard the papers flapping around her.

Rory lowered her hands to see a woman in professional looking black pants, black boots, and a feminine but very connoisseur looking black blouse with a black cape billowing behind her. Rory noticed that all the black set off the woman's pale ivory skin and the realization of who was standing before her hit Rory in the face like ton of bricks as she saw the woman's pale green eyes and long dark-brown hair flowing about her.

"S-Sarah?" Rory whispered.

Author's Note: Bum… Bum… BUM! LoL Sorry, had to get that out of my system… But yeah, now Sarah and Rory are finally going to meet.. And I know some of you are probably thinking, "Oh come on! She's just wishing herself away like Sarah did?" Well yeah, but there is going to be more conflict and trouble caused because Rory's in foster care and if they believe she's "run away" depending on how long she remains missing, if she was to return, she might be put in a juvenile detention center… And there's going to be all this drama between Rory and Jareth because like I said before, Rory and Jareth don't really mesh…

Well… More to come! X-P


	3. Ch3: Let me put it this way

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Alrighty… Switching back now to Sarah's P.O.V. I know some people are probably like, "So what, now Sarah's appearing to take the children that are wished away in Jareth's place?" You'll soon find out, but come on: A) She's the Queen of the Goblins, she has some jurisdiction over wished away children and B) It's _her_ niece! Well, directly at least…Anyway, just wait and see… It gets really interesting… And just because Sarah decided she liked living in the Underground better than the Aboveground doesn't mean that Rory feels that same way….

Oh, and any flashbacks or references to the story (a.k.a. **The Labyrinth** book) will be written in bolds and italics, **_like this…_**

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Three: _Let me put it this way… What choice have you got?_

Sarah took in a deep breath as she heard the girl before her whisper her name. _How does she know who I am if we've never met before?_ Sarah wondered, sad that she lost the advantage of being able to recognize Rory but Rory not being able to recognize her. _I can't believe I couldn't see the resemblance she has to Toby before…_ Sarah thought as she studied the girl in front of her.

True she had Delilah's fiery hair, but she had Toby's round face and angelic blue eyes. Sarah kept her tears at bay as she almost saw Toby emerge from this young girl. Sarah's nostalgia was shattered when Rory suddenly exclaimed, "What the hell is going on!"

Sarah was stunned by the girl's tactlessness and rudeness, but then quickly came back, "Is that anyway you talk to someone who's trying to help you?"

Rory looked embarrassed and looked downward and mumbled, "I don't need anyone's help…"

Sarah crossed her arms, mimicking her husband, and said sharply, "Oh really… So you just called on the goblins for a kick, did you? Just wished for something without caring what the outcome or the consequences were?" _Well, for being Toby's daughter she sure does act…. like me…_ Sarah thought whimsically.

Rory suddenly walked towards Sarah as menacingly as she could and challenged, "Who are you to come in here and scold me like I'm some naïve child? You don't know me…" Rory's anger began to spill out of her as she spat, "You don't know what I've been through!"

Sarah just stared back into Rory's angry blue eyes and said, sadness lingering on her voice, "Actually… I do know what you've been through… I do know what it's like to lose the people you love…"

To Sarah's bewilderment, Rory scoffed at her and moved towards her things that were scattered about the floor. She watched at Rory turned her back to her and began to gather all the papers up and put them back into their folder.

"Still… that doesn't mean we understand each other… That we have some weird connection…"

Sarah listened to the anger, sadness, and disregard in Rory's voice and she began to see a connection that Rory obviously disbelieved in.

"I wouldn't be too sure about that… You see, I know, probably better than anyone you've ever known, what it feels like to be alone… To have no one take notice of you… To have people cast you out and ignore you because you're different… To have people you love suddenly leave you or mistreat you… To feel like no one can help you and you're stuck in a nightmare you try to wake up from, but you can't… You just desperately want something or someone you can put your trust in…"

Sarah watched as she saw Rory's shoulders become rigid as if Sarah's words were sharp pointed rocks that Sarah was pitching at her. Sarah stopped as she watched Rory begin to take deeper breaths, taking in all that Sarah said. Sarah knew she'd broken through to Rory, and she became relieved: breaking through to Rory had been the biggest problem that she had to face. Sarah moved towards Rory and sat down beside her on the floor and waited for Rory to say something.

Rory suddenly lowered the black hood that covered her fiery hair and let her long locks fall loosely around her shoulders. Sarah watched and thought, _She certainly has her mother's beauty…_ Rory looked at Sarah and Sarah could see she was holding back tears in her lovely blue eyes.

"How can I trust you?" Rory asked her in a surprisingly shaky voice (for the girl that just swore at Sarah before), "Even if you are my only family left… I don't _know_ you… You've been gone for almost 25 years, with no trace of your existence anywhere… How am I supposed to trust someone that doesn't exist? How do I even know if you're for real?"

Sarah looked back into Rory's blue eyes with her pale green ones, searching for an answer to give her. Sarah was silent for a moment, then something in the flickering light of the lightening caught her eye. Rory was clutching a small red leather book that was only too familiar to Sarah. Sarah gently took the book from Rory and began flipping through the pages. She looked back at Rory and with a small smile, simply said, "Sometimes the things that we believe in the most are the things we least expect to be real…" She held the book out to Rory and remarked, "You believed in this enough to call me here… Now I'm just asking you to believe in me…" As Rory slowly took the book from her hands, she said, "You can trust me…" she smirked and added, "…besides, what choice have you got?"

Rory chuckled as she realized the truth in what Sarah was saying. Rory looked around her and she considered what Sarah's actions were going to be.

"So what will happen? I'll just go with you to…" Rory shrugged as she finished with what knowledge she'd been taught since she was a small child, "…the Goblin City, then? I just leave everything and everyone and just go to some imaginary place?"

Sarah shook her head, "No… The Underground is very much an actual place… Where do you think I've been living for 24 years?"

The reality of what Sarah said hit Rory like a slap in the face as everything began to make sense. Why Sarah had not been heard from for 25 years in any state, country, or continent. Why no body was ever recovered. Why, when she was technically 48 years old, she looked like she was only 23 or 24, which was around the time she disappeared.

Rory sighed as she looked around, considering the consequences and repercussions that would result from her sudden and inexplicable absence.

"Well… I'm not really sure how this is going to work out…" Rory said, warily. But then grabbing her box of things and her information folder, she finished dynamically, "…But then again, I've always gotten a rush from the thrill of the unknown and problematic…" Sarah laughed as she again saw more of herself in Rory's personality. _She may have her daddy's looks,_ Sarah thought, highly entertained, _but she's got my spirit…_

"Well then…" Sarah began, but she suddenly gasped and became wide eyed, "Oh! I almost forgot my little bit I'm supposed to do…" She quickly stood up.

Rory followed her, "What are you talking abo—"

Sarah held up her hands silencing Rory, then seemed to concentrate on something while muttering, "Okay… Jareth said to focus, then….." Sarah held her hand out, palm facing up with her fingers brought together as if balancing something on her fingertips. Then, right before Rory's eyes, a small crystal ball a little smaller than a tennis ball appeared on Sarah's fingertips.

"Whoa…" Rory said under her breath.

"Yes!" Sarah exclaimed, pumping her other fist triumphantly, "It worked!" She suddenly became focused again, and said to Rory with a theatrical seriousness, "I've brought you a gift…"

"What the hell is it?" Rory said, extremely confused.

Sarah's eyebrows darted downward at hearing Rory swear. Even though she would let an occasional curse slip ever now and again when she was a teenager, Sarah had gone through too much and had realized she didn't want to waste time in her existence with such profanity and obscenity.

"It's a crystal nothing more…" Sarah said, still holding the crystal still. She suddenly leaned closer to Rory and whispered, "Sorry, I can't roll it or twirl it magically like Jareth can… At least not yet…"

Rory just shrugged to signify she didn't mind, but she made a note in the back of her mind to find out from Sarah later who "Jareth" was. Rory had noticed a wedding ring on Sarah's other hand when she'd pumped her fist and Rory thought, _Her husband, perhaps…?_

Sarah straightened back up and continued her speech, "But if you turn it this way, and look into it, it will show you your dreams… But this is not a gift for an ordinary girl who is decides to shy away from the world and not live her life…" Sarah gave Rory a heartfelt look as she added, "That's not the life her parents wanted for her…" Rory felt a tug at her heart as she heard Sarah mention her parents for the first time.

Sarah held the crystal out to Rory, "Do you want it?" Rory looked hesitantly at the crystal and Sarah gave her a kind look and added, "Then forget the sadness… Forget the sorrow…" Rory looked back up at Sarah. She took a deep breath, tightening her grip on the box and folder, and with her free hand, took hold of the crystal. As soon as she had, everything around Rory began to dissolve. She felt as if she was falling and Sarah's image soon dissolved as well.

She felt her grip on her box and folder slipping and she tried her hardest to hold on to it. She would **not** lose what she had left of her parents. She suddenly felt a comforting force ease the box and folder out of her grasp, but she didn't worry. For some reason, she wasn't worried about the box and folder. She just surrendered to the haze that was beginning to engulf her. As she surrendered a blend of memories of the past whirled around her in pictures and in sounds.

**_Daddy, tell me another story! One about the goblins and the young girl…_**

"**_Once upon a time… There was a beautiful young girl who's stepmother always made her stay home with the baby… And the young girl was practically a slave… So one night, when the baby had been particularly cruel to her… She called on the goblins for help…"_**

**_Daddy… Where is your sister, Aunt Sarah? _**

_**Why do you care about her? Have you ever heard from her? What does it matter?**_

**_Why didn't you just tell me that Sarah's been missing? Why have you been keeping all these secrets from me?_**

**_Rory, stop fighting about things that aren't worth bringing up! Just get in the car and let's go!_**

**_Rory, you're father's right… Some things are better left unspoken of…_**

**_I'm not going anywhere with people that keep secrets from me… Secrets about my family… Secrets about what's a part of who I am!_**

**_This is Dr. Miranda Jefferson… I'm very sorry to inform you that they both passed away… They had been in a serious car accident, and we lost them…_**

**_Rory, why do you sit there and wallow in self-pity… You need to move on with your life! This whole "feel-bad-for-me" act is getting really pathetic… Move on!_**

_**The courts and my foster family don't give a damn about me… Nobody gives a damn about this poor little girl that lost her parents and has not a family member in the world…**_

**_I wish the goblins would come and take me away… right now!_**

_**Is that anyway you talk to someone who's trying to help you?**_

_**Sometimes the things that we believe in the most are the things we least expect to be real…**_

_**You believed in this enough to call me here… Now I'm just asking you to believe in me…**_

**_You can trust me…besides, what choice have you got?_**

As Rory felt herself falling into the deep lethargy of the haze, just before she fell asleep, she heard Sarah's comforting voice:

_**Then forget the sadness… Forget the sorrow…**_

Author's Note: Well, okay, sorry if that was a little weird… I really wanted to jump to the point… I originally planned for Rory to be more suspicious of Sarah (like she's a stranger), but I changed my mind because I wanted it to be more of "She knew _of_ Sarah, she just doesn't _know_ Sarah…" Does that make sense? I hope it does… If it doesn't, I apologize, but at least now I can start on the Rory/Jareth conflict… -rubs hands together deviously and excitedly-


	4. Ch4: Shows What You Know

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Alright, this wouldn't be a Laby fan fic without the Goblin King himself, and there have already been three chapters without him! –gasp!– So I decided I'm going to go from Jareth's POV before we get back to Rory… Then I'll let the fun begin… –tee hee– And remember, flashbacks look like **_this… bold and italicized…_**

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Four: _Shows What You Know…_

Jareth was pacing in his and Sarah's bedroom, thoughts furiously swarming through his mind. He was trying his best not to wake Sarah, who had returned at almost the crack of dawn with a rebellious young teenager sound asleep in her arms. They had put her in one of the spare rooms, just like the one Sarah had when she'd arrived in the Underground after wishing herself away. He was trying his best to support Sarah in bringing Rory to the Underground, but this Rory situation was not as easy as Sarah's had been.

When Sarah had wished herself away, her stepmother was counting on her leaving. She hadn't cared that Sarah really had left, and Jareth (and Sarah as well) had thought that Sarah's whereabouts had been left ignored and overlooked. It wasn't until they had settled Rory in that Jareth found the folder that had evidence otherwise. Karen had filed a missing person's report and Jareth couldn't wrap his mind around why. He did, however, have a strong feeling that Toby had had a hand in it. He most likely didn't expect his demands to be fulfilled and when he realized Sarah was really gone, he begged Karen to do something.

Rory, however, was not ignored or overlooked… physically at least. Jareth didn't doubt that Rory was going through a horrible psychological crisis that had been left untreated since her parents had died. But he knew that her foster family had been under strict orders to take care of her, to keep an eye on her. No doubt they already knew she was missing and had already alerted the authorities.

Jareth tried to talk Sarah out of it. He did care about Rory; technically, she was his niece too. But he knew the trouble that would arise as a ward of the state suddenly disappears not so long after becoming the responsibility of the state. But it was no use. For three weeks Sarah fought and argued with Jareth passionately and in her normal, stubborn way, would not be dissuaded.

Jareth stopped pacing for a moment, rubbing his temples trying to ease his aching mind. He heard Sarah stir, and he quietly moved to their bed and sat down beside her. Sarah sighed in her sleep as she moved on her back, a couple locks of her long, dark hair trailing across her pale face. Jareth tenderly tucked the locks behind her ear and continued to stroke her face. As he gazed upon the face that he loved so much, he thought, as if telling Sarah, _I'll try, Sarah… I'll try to make this work for you…_ Jareth looked at Sarah wistfully as he thought, _And for Toby too…_

XXX 

_No… I just wanna stay here… It's nice and warm here…_ Rory thought as she saw the beams of sunlight flutter over her still closed eyelids. Rory snuggled deeper into the warm, comfortable covers, content where she was. Her eyelids flew open as the memories of the previous night pulsated through her mind.

_**What the hell is going on!**_

_**Is that anyway you talk to someone who's trying to help you?**_

_**I wouldn't be too sure about that… You see, I know, probably better than anyone you've ever known, what it feels like to be alone…**_

_**You just desperately want something or someone you can put your trust in…**_

_**How can I trust you? Even if you are my only family left… I don't know you… **_

_**You've been gone for almost 25 years, with no trace of your existence anywhere… **_

_**How am I supposed to trust someone that doesn't exist? **_

_**How do I even know if you're for real?**_

_**Sometimes the things that we believe in the most are the things we least expect to be real…**_

Rory steadied her breathing, which had begun to quicken as the memories came back to her. She looked at everything within her field of vision, taking in everything she saw. But she was still lying down, and she closed her eyes and shook her head.

_It was all a dream… this is all a dream… soon I'll wake up, sitting up on my bed in my foster room… It's a dream… It's a dream…_

Rory peaked an eye open, to see if her eyes really were deceiving her, and she squeezed her eyes shut and moaned, "Oh no…" as she realized her eyes were true to what they saw. She finally convinced herself to open her eyes again and somehow she had sat up and begun to take in where she was.

She was in a lavish suite that just boggled her mind. She really didn't know what to do with herself. Even when her parents were alive, she was never this excessively fortunate and pampered. She decided to get dressed and find Sarah. She pushed off the covers and was surprised to discover she was in her favorite pajamas, white silk with little cherries all over them.

She'd begged her mother to get them for her 13th birthday, but they were expensive and her mother insisted she would never, "in this life or the next", pay that much money for pajamas. 2 days after her birthday, her father surprised her with them. Sure her mother was mad, but her mother could never stay mad at either of them for long.

Rory began to search through the lavish chestnut drawers for clothes then she came to a door that she prayed lead to a closet. She figured she was in "the castle beyond the Goblin City" and she really did not want to have to search **the** castle beyond the Goblin City in her cherry pajamas. Rory opened the door and let out a groan as she saw what the door was holding. She stepped into a walk-in closet and erratically flipped through the clothes.

"I've just walked into the Disney Princess® Dream Closet…" Rory groaned. She flipped through various outfits that were in her opinion: girly, whimsical, ridiculous and completely laughable. Rory was no tomboy, but she was not overly girly and prided herself on confusing people. She would wear all black, black outfit, black lipstick, the whole nine yards, but then she'd wear school colors, short shorts, and other preppy clothes. But this was much more extreme… Much more… intensely ludicrous.

She decided she'd feel less ridiculous in her cherry pajamas and decided to look for Sarah how she was. She really didn't care what anyone thought of her.

She glanced at herself in the large mirror in the immense bathroom and ran her fingers through her hair and tied her long, red mane into a ponytail. When she was little, her mother would always insist that she brush Rory's thick hair, and Rory didn't mind. She loved the feeling of the brush running through her hair, and most of the time her mother would brush her hair then braid it, trying various braids and playing with her hair. As she got older, her hair naturally began to take on a tousled look, no matter how many times she brushed it or straightened it. She just became used to running her fingers through her hair and going with it. Most the time her hair just worked itself out.

Rory walked towards the door, prepared to walk out and began searching for Sarah, and she stopped as she heard footsteps outside her door. Rory's hand froze, inches from the doorknob, and she suspiciously flattened herself against the wall, expecting whomever it was outside to come in, or knock for that matter. Rory heard the footsteps stop outside her door and she didn't hear anything else. She decided to take a risk and she quickly ripped the door open, wanting to surprise whoever it was outside.

Rory was shocked, however, to find no one there. She leaned out into the hallway and looked to her left. Nothing. She looked to her right. Nothing. As she turned back to the left to go back into her room, she let out a small yelp as she saw a man leaning against the left wall closest to her doorway. He'd suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and Rory gulped as she realized who he was after only one look at him up and down. A leather jacket, form-fitting pants, black knee high boots, an indisputably immense blonde mane, and a cocky grin dancing on the corners of thin lips.

"Y-you're the Goblin King…" Rory said, still in a state of shock.

**XXX**

Jareth smirked as he watched the surprised expression spread onto Rory's face. From what Sarah had told him about her personality and how he'd seen her dressed the previous night, he expected an unreasonable renegade. This wide-eyed girl in childish pajamas with cherries on them was not what he expected to find. He chuckled as he enjoyed the fact that he was the one in more control, making him feel good that the situation was advantageous in his favor.

"Well well well… Rory… You're certainly not what I expected…" Jareth said, failing to mask the hint of smugness and amusement in his voice.

"You're not exactly what I expected either…" Rory shot back quickly, "…I mean I expected the eccentric attire, but I didn't expect to hear this 'I'm-above-you-I-know-more-than-you-do-I'm-the-King-of-all-the-land' bullshit…"

Jareth paused a moment, disbelieving of the impertinence and cheek he was getting from Rory. Just like… well, Sarah… He crossed his arms across his chest and said, "Now I don't think this is the way to be courteous to your host… And I'm sure this is not how you would talk to family…"

Rory was shocked to hear Jareth say they were family, and then she looked at his crossed arms and saw a ring on his left hand. _So I was right… Sarah married the Goblin King… She called him Jareth… This means Jareth is my uncle! Wow… talk about odd relatives…_

Jareth thought from Rory's silence that he had put her in her place and she'd given up on trying to be rude. However, she suddenly stepped towards him, mimicking his arms across his chest, and said, "Well I know I'd talk to family the way my family would talk to me… If an uncle wants to talk to me with no respect, whatsoever, as if I'm some puerile child that he can talk down to, I'll be sure to return the courtesy…"

Once again, Rory's impertinence and cheek shocked Jareth, and just like Sarah so many years before her, he felt the need to challenge that pig-headedness.

"I give respect to people whom I trust and people who prove to me that they deserve my respect. So far, for the past few months you've driven me and my wife apart, creating an uncomfortable space between us and on top of that, you act like a childish teenager that has no concept of graciousness or civility…"

Jareth moved closer to Rory, his face inches from hers, and said in a low tone, "…Does that sound like you've earned any respect?" Rory just stood there, staring back at Jareth, not knowing what to say or how to comeback to his accusations.

"Sarah will be up soon… If you wish to eat breakfast with her, do so… That is, if you don't mind 'returning the courtesy' of her taking you in in the first place…" Jareth said with a patronizing tone. He turned on his heel and walked down the hallway, the heels of his boots clicking rhythmically.

Rory hated when the other person had the last word in a battle of wits, so she hurried after Jareth.

"Hey! I'm not finished yet!" Rory called after him. She almost caught up with Jareth, but then he turned a corner. Rory turned that same corner moments after Jareth did and expected to see him walking in the direction he'd turned to. But she gasped as she looked around and he'd disappeared. She looked in both directions, the hallways seemed to go on and on forever. She glanced around suspiciously, expecting him to sneak up on her like he did before, but he never reappeared.

Rory sighed as she began to walk again, her stomach empty and her mind full, trying to ignore the guilty feeling that was rushing over every inch of her.

_**So far, for the past few months you've driven me and my wife apart, creating an uncomfortable space between us…**_

_Gosh, I really wouldn't mind grabbing a bite to eat and talking with Sarah…_ Rory thought, _…I've something to discuss with her…_ Thinking of the haughtiness that had greeted her the morning of her first day in an alternate universe.

Author's Note: So I hope everyone enjoyed this… I'd really intended for Rory and Jareth's "battle of wits" to be more defining, them both learning more about the other, but I decided to (like in _The Way Forward_) have them learn about each other over time through various arguments and debates. Like in this "battle of wits", Rory learned that she's been unknowingly causing problems in Sarah and Jareth's marriage… So I'm going to let it develop… Sorry for the wait, life's been pretty hectic!


	5. Ch5: Alright, Let's Handle This Thing

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Alright, so I've set up the conflict between Jareth and Rory… -like a fake newscaster- Now let's get back to the Goblin Queen, Sarah…. Sorry, just thought that'd be funny…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Five: _Alright, Let's Handle This Thing Logically…_

Sarah sighed as she rolled over, slipping out of slumber and gaining consciousness. She slowly opened her eyes and looked around. Jareth wasn't beside her, but she figured as much. Since she started having the dreams about Toby, Delilah, and Rory, he'd become kind of distant. Sarah had also figured that with Rory's arrival in the Underground, Jareth's behavior would become even more odd… Well odd for a magical entity of an alternate universe.

She got out of bed and slipped a crimson silk robe over her silky, cream-colored nightgown and slipped into her fuzzy slippers. She grinned as she remembered how she whined to Jareth about how cold the floors of the castle where she couldn't walk around barefoot with out fear of frostbite. That night she found the pair of fuzzy slippers waiting on her pillow.

She left their bedroom and decided to go to see if Rory was up. She made it to Rory's room in no time, knowing the castle like the back of her hand, and knocked on the door.

"Rory? Rory are you awake?" Sarah said. She listened through the door and when she heard nothing, she knocked again.

"Rory? It's Sarah… Are you hungry?" Even though she didn't want to invade Rory's privacy (she remembered how she hated it when her privacy was invaded when she was a teenager), Sarah slowly and cautiously opened the door.

She looked around and saw nothing. She looked around the room, in the bathroom, in the closet. The bed was made, indicating that Rory had already left and some of the staff had already made her bed. Sarah sighed as she realized she'd have to search the castle for Rory. _She could be anywhere…_ Sarah thought hopelessly. _Unless…_

Sarah suddenly held out her hand just like she did before in Rory's room and closed her eyes and seemed to be concentrating. Suddenly a crystal ball formed in her hand. Sarah pumped her fists triumphantly again.

"Yes!" She said aloud to herself. _ Now all I have to do is practice the twirling…_ She thought and then she held the crystal up to eye level and closed her eyes, concentrating. _Rory… Rory… Show me Rory…_ Sarah thought distinctly.

She opened her eyes and saw Rory's form in the crystal. Sarah pumped her fists again and said proudly, "Yes! When I'm good, I'm really good…" She studied the crystal and Rory, who was wandering around obviously lost, and realized, "She headed for the Throne Room…"

_Well, won't that be a surprise to wander in and face all those make believe creatures from your childhood stories…_ Sarah thought, highly amused. _Now Jareth was helping me work on transporting myself… Shall I give it a go?_

Sarah tossed the crystal up and walked away, not caring that it might break (which is what any normal person would believe to happen), and moved away as the crystal fell and as it was about to hit the ground, the crystal faded away.

Sarah stopped and closed her eyes and began focusing again. _Hopefully, I'll become so accustomed to this, I won't have to stop and focus… I can just… do it… Like Jareth…_ Sarah thought. Sarah stood for a few moments, eyes closed, and suddenly, she was gone.

XXX 

Rory felt like she was going to burst. She was angry, upset, confused, suffering hunger pangs that made her almost keel over, and she felt like all her heightened emotions were going to burst from her at any moment. She'd been wandering around the desolate hallways for gosh knows how long, with the occasional chortle or cackle here and there, and even when she turned to see where the sound was coming from, she'd be alone.

_Oh yeah… I'm gonna live here and I can't even figure out where to get a bite to eat! You know… if you are gonna live somewhere, it does help if you're able to eat…_ Rory thought bitterly and miserably.

She suddenly heard all the guffawing and sounds she'd been hearing randomly, but they were concentrated and many. The sounds were coming from a room not too far ahead, and it aroused Rory's curiosity. The last time she'd heard such noises was when she initially "wished herself away".

She cautiously walked into the room and stood in a state of complete shock as she took in all that she saw. The whole room was filled with goblins. Not quite the watered-down, charming goblins in pictorial fairytales, but nasty, gross, odious little creatures, all about the place. They were chasing each other around, irritating chickens, and wallowing. Rory couldn't help but wrinkle her nose just at the sight of them, then her nose stayed wrinkled as a repulsive, nauseating smell filled her senses.

One suddenly spotted her and hit the goblin next to him in the head and pointed to Rory. The goblin that was hit in the head turned to the other and began hitting the first, yelling at him in gibberish that could not have been kind in the least, then stared agape at Rory as he looked to where the first goblin was pointing. Other goblins began to run into the first two, and when they looked into the direction the others were looking, they too stood agape at Rory.

Eventually, all the little beady eyes (and some oversized, goggle-like ones) were on Rory. Rory shifted uncomfortably, unsure of what to do. She wasn't sure if the vulgar, odd little creatures would harm her, and she knew that she looked rather odd herself, still in her cherry pajamas.

Without warning, Sarah fell from nowhere and landed at a strange angle on top of a chicken coop. All the gazes moved from Rory to Sarah, and even Rory couldn't help staring quizzically at Sarah. Sarah got up as quickly as she could manage and brushed herself, muttering to herself, "Yeah… Definitely need to work on the arrival…"

She looked up and held up her hands, "It's alright, she's with me…" The goblins, who had apparently forgotten Rory was even there as Sarah came crashing down, turned back to Rory. Sarah hurried to Rory's side and said, "This is my niece, Rory… I expect everyone to treat her no differently than you would treat me or Jareth…"

At the mention of Jareth, an obvious connection was made and the goblins quickly bowed to Rory and quickly scurried to their previous activities. Sarah grinned at Rory and said, "They're pretty repulsive and small-minded, but they are loyal and obedient and surprisingly respectful…" Rory gave Sarah an "Okay-sure-whatever-you-believe" look, which Sarah ignored and said brightly, "Hungry?" She took Rory by the hand and led her out of the Throne Room.

Rory allowed Sarah to lead her along like a child, for now, and asked, "What was that room? I saw some sort of raised chair, is it some sort of ceremonial room?"

"It's actually the Throne Room… The goblins invade it when they like and Jareth usually uses it, for the most part…" Sarah answered.

Rory rolled her eyes at the sound of Jareth's name and mumbled, "Oh…" Sarah sensed the hostility at her mentioning Jareth and decided to address it once they were settled. Sarah led Rory into a room set off to the side and when Rory entered it, she was stupefied as she saw an outside terrace with an elegant table set up with a scrumptious looking brunch. Sarah grinned as she saw Rory's expression and she settled at one end of the long table, motioning to Rory to sit across from her. Rory, still taken aback, settled into her seat.

"You look like you could eat an elephant…" Sarah remarked, snapping Rory out of her stupefaction, and added, "…Please, go ahead and eat something!" Rory obligingly began to take various fruits and putting them on her plate. As she looked at the feast before her, she saw something that she recognized that comforted her in a way.

A plate of blueberry waffles. Something so simple nearly brought tears to Rory's eyes. As she stared at the dish, memories of her father waking up early to make her waffles flooded back to Rory. And he always insisted on making them from scratch, even though he didn't have a cell in his body that could tell him how to cook.

Rory could list on and on how many times her mom had screamed at her dad about him burning down the house and how many times her dad ignored her mom's screams. No matter how many screams or random bursts of fire, her father would work diligently until he finally made Rory an edible plate of waffles.

Surprisingly enough, the waffles on the plate before Rory weren't perfect. They looked almost exactly like the edible batch of waffles her dad would have eventually made. She suddenly looked up to see Sarah watching her with a kind smile and tenderness in her eyes. Rory opened her mouth but couldn't find any words to say.

Sarah smiled even wider and said, "I hoped you'd like them… I hope you don't mind, I kind of went through your pictures and I found one of you and Toby cooking some, so I hoped they'd mean something to you…"

Rory let out a small laugh as she smiled, thinking of the picture. Rory had to be about 9 or 10 and even though it was her dad's birthday, he insisted on making her waffles, so she declared she would make him a special birthday one. A special pink birthday waffle, and her mother had taken the picture while they were both cooking. Just before her mom pulled out the camera, her dad had just tossed a bit of flour at Rory, hitting her in the face, getting on her nose, a cheek and an ear. Rory had retaliated by tossing a larger clump of flour at him, hitting him right between the eyes, exploding all over his face, shirt and hair. They'd begun laughing and hugged and her mom called to them and they turned to her and she snapped the picture.

The tears Rory had held back began to well up in her eyes. "They do…" Rory murmured gratefully, "…Thank you…" Sarah just smiled and went back to eating. Rory was still for a few moments, then taking a waffle, said to herself, "How can you be this benevolent, and your husband so self-centered…"

Even though she was not meant to hear it, Sarah looked up at Rory's words and asked, "What do you mean self-centered? You haven't even met Jareth yet… How are you making such presumptions of him?"

Rory looked up, surprised at Sarah's response, and stuttered, "Well, I just… I'm not… He said… I was just… He acted so…" She took a breath in and out upon seeing Sarah's expression and articulated, "I have met him… I met him this morning… I came out of my room and he appeared and without any introduction or greeting, the first thing that came out of his mouth was patronizing and snooty… So I just naturally acted the same way to him, figuring out who he was and how I was related to him, and the next thing I knew he was blaming me for all these problems and…" As she related what happened, Rory began to talk more and more quickly to the point she began to babble.

Sarah quickly raised her hands to silence Rory and said, "Alright, alright, let's handle this thing logically…" When she saw she had Rory's attention, she said, "Now… You said he was patronizing… I can believe that… Now what did he blame you for exactly?"

Rory stopped to remember exactly what Jareth had said to her, "He said that I had caused this been problem between the two of you… That I'd driven you apart, I think..." She began to talk furiously again as she added, "Then he had the nerve to say that he wasn't treating me with respect that I hadn't earned from him yet and then…" She stopped as she was silenced by Sarah again.

"I think I have a few things to talk about with my husband…" Sarah stated plainly. Rory opened her mouth to say something, but Sarah cut her off, "Now, don't let it bother you, don't concern yourself with anything, I have to take care of this with Jareth…. Don't you worry, just leave him to me…" Sarah rested her elbow on the table and set her chin on her fist and murmured as she became lost in thought, "…Just leave him to me…"

Rory shifted in her seat, uneasily, and asked, "I'm not trying to question your authority or control, Sarah, but are you really sure you can get through to him… I mean, only from talking to him for a few moments I was able to learn the extent of his ego, and he doesn't seem like the kind of person to be opposed freely…"

Sarah smirked as she said, "I've taken him on for much more and I'm more than certain I can handle him… More than sure…"

XXX 

Author's Note: Well I hope that everyone enjoyed this chapter and the past couple of updates… Sorry for the wait, I don't have as much freetime/downtime as I did before to write chapters, so I'll have to see about updating weekly… Hopefully if I can… 


	6. Ch6: No, No, I Have To Face Him Alone

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Alright, the Sarah vs. Jareth fight will begin… And well, end… -smirks mischievously- Let's just say there will be some **M-rated** content here…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Six: _No, No, I Have To Face Him Alone…_

Sarah was walking around the castle looking for Jareth. She'd attempted to find him using a crystal, but it seemed that Jareth was unable to be pinpointed by the crystal. _Figures I can't find him using his own trick_, Sarah had thought cynically. She'd assured Rory she'd be able to handle Jareth alone. Rory had tried to talk Sarah into talking to Jareth with her, but Sarah had told her, "No, no, I have to face him alone… Bringing you here was my idea and he apparently has a problem with it, and I'll discuss it with him just the two of us…"

Sarah became frustrated and she stopped and leaned against a cold, stone wall. She'd asked every and any goblin that she passed by if they knew Jareth's whereabouts, and every time they gave her a destination, she'd go where they told her and Jareth was nowhere to be found. She'd lost track of how long she'd been on this wild-goose-chase, and she'd had enough.

"Jareth… I know that you're aware of the fact that I've been looking for you… Stop this foolishness right now…" Sarah called out boldly, moving away from the wall and looking around in a circle in an attempt to see Jareth.

Sarah suddenly heard behind her, "Well look who's being the foolish one now…" She turned and saw Jareth leaning against the wall. She gave him an annoyed look and he smirked.

"So… What can I do for you?" Jareth said tauntingly, smirking and folding his arms across his chest.

"Why the hell did you act like such a pretentious egotist to Rory? Where the hell do you come of cornering her and blaming her for any problems we have?" Sarah spat angrily at Jareth.

Jareth's expression changed at the mention of Rory, and he was shocked at how spitefully Sarah addressed him. He saw the anger on Sarah's face and he became angry, knowing Sarah didn't understand his displeasure of having Rory there.

"Well where the hell do you come of cornering _me_ like this, not bothering at all to hear my side of the story…"

"Are you saying you weren't pretentious and egotistical?" Sarah asked questioningly.

"No, but Rory had no ground being so rude and vulgar to me… I had not meant to be vicious and she responded with sharpness and rude language…"

"Maybe she responded like that because you had been just as equally sharp and rude… You never think of how your tone makes other people feel… You act condescending and patronizing and wonder why people don't like you…"

"I can't believe that you are attacking me this way… You're siding with a rude, asinine teenager you just met instead of your own husband… You're more concerned with her than you are with us…" Jareth accused.

Sarah stubbornly retorted, "I am not…"

"Oh really?" Jareth asked, raising an eyebrow. "Ever since you began having dreams of Toby and Rory, you've neglected and belittled our relationship."

Sarah scoffed and shot back, "Funny you should accuse _me_ of neglecting our relationship… Ever since I began having dreams of Rory, you refused to believe me or give me real support I needed… If you'd given your support, then I might have been able to help Toby… By the time you finally did, it was too late!"

Jareth stopped, shocked and hurt of what Sarah was accusing him.

"So now Toby's death is my fault too…" Jareth said quietly.

Sarah didn't care about the change in Jareth's tone or demeanor, and continued, "Yes, in a way… You didn't support me and you're not supporting me now in my decision to take in Rory… Don't you remember what you promised me?"

"I never promised you I'd support the decision to take Rory in… Not completely…" Jareth said, defensively, becoming angry again. He strode by Sarah, not wanting to get so angry he'd say something to Sarah he'd wish to take back.

"Oh yes you did, Jareth…" Sarah said forcefully and loudly, following Jareth, who was already outside their bedroom. "The day you married me you promised…"

Jareth stopped in the doorway of their bedroom, not facing Sarah. Sarah, however, could see Jareth's shoulders become tense. After he didn't respond, she knew she'd gotten through to him and she continued.

"**_I offer you my solemn vow to be your faithful partner… I promise to support you in your goals for as long as we both shall live…_**" Sarah said, reciting the few lines of their wedding vows.

Jareth was silent for a moment, and Sarah thought that he was about to apologize. She was surprised when he turned around and retorted, "I do believe that you also made a promise to me the day you married me, Sarah…"

He got closer to her and said, "**_I take you… To be my constant friend… from this day forward…_**" He quickly replied, "I do believe you've broken that promise Sarah, as you have been as inconstant as a 'friend' can be…"

So used to being the accuser, Sarah stared into his face, unable to find any words as she became the accused.

She finally found her voice and answered, "I do think that goes both ways, Jareth… I don't believe leaving your partner to wake up alone is anyway to be a 'friend'… I don't believe sending your partner to be psychoanalyzed instead of helping them yourself is anyway to be a 'friend'…"

"And I don't believe choosing someone you didn't even know existed for 15 years over someone you made believe you unconditionally loved is anyway to be a 'friend', since you've so obviously made it clear that your love has certain conditions…"

Jareth was cut short as Sarah's hand made a sharp impact with his cheek. Sarah's angry face gave Jareth a harsh look as Jareth, open-mouthed and dumbfounded, raised a hand to his slowly reddening cheek.

"I hate you…" Sarah whispered vindictively.

Her assertion cut into Jareth's heart and he responded without hesitation, "I hate you…"

Sarah angrily stated again, louder, "I hate you…"

Jareth responded, just as loud, "And I hate you…"

"I _hate_ you…"

"And I hate _you_…"

Soon they were just standing in the doorway of their room, shouting back and forth at each other.

"I HATE YOU!"

"I HATE YOU!"

"**I HATE YOU!**" Sarah finally screamed, shrieking.

Suddenly without warning, Jareth grabbed Sarah and kissed her. Sarah met Jareth's fervor as their emotions poured out of them, and passionately kissed him back. Jareth, still kissing Sarah, pulled her through the doorway into their room and Sarah, still kissing Jareth, closed the door behind them.

"I hate you…" Jareth murmured in a soft, gentle tone. He kissed Sarah again and ran his hands along her back.

"I hate you…" Sarah echoed, her hands running through Jareth's blonde locks, and began kissing Jareth again. They continued to break from their kisses to murmur their hate for the other. Sarah moaned as Jareth moved from her lips to below her jaw, then down her neck to her shoulders.

"Oh, god, Jareth I've missed you…" Sarah uttered in a guttural moan.

Jareth murmured in agreement as he moved back to Sarah's mouth and agreed with a passionate kiss. He began to lead her towards the bed, and Sarah was only too happy to oblige. Sarah's hands had already unbuttoned Jareth's shirt and were running over his pale chest. Jareth tried to steady himself, but realized he couldn't make it to the bed in time, and suddenly pinned Sarah against a wall.

He began to kiss Sarah's neck ardently and moved his way to her breasts as he removed her nightgown. Sarah began to work off Jareth's pants and Jareth quickly kicked them off with his boots. He pushed her against the wall forcefully as he kissed her and Sarah wrapped her arms around his neck. Sarah broke her mouth from Jareth's and moving her mouth to Jareth's ear, whispered carnally, "Take me, Jareth… I need you… I want you… So much…"

Jareth answered by kissing her again as he pulled her right leg up to his side taking hold of her right thigh, to which she followed and raised her left leg to his side as he took hold of her left thigh.

"You're mine, Sarah… Mine…" Jareth uttered with a lecherous carnality as he slid within her. Sarah dug her fingernails into Jareth's back as he slid into her, and she gasped as he quickly began to thrust forcefully in and out of her as he held her up and kept her pinned against the wall. She wrapped her legs tightly around him as he continued to drive madly within her.

"Jareth… Oh, Jareth… Jareth… Oh my god…" Sarah panted in lustful delirium.

"Sarah… Sarah…" Jareth gasped as he began to experience a heightened delirium of his own. They continued to move together at their own pace, matching the others movements, experiencing a magnified pleasure and sensual indulgence they hadn't experienced in a long time. The finally reached their own releases, Jareth spilling himself into Sarah.

The stopped, still gripping onto the other, panting. Still connected, Jareth held onto Sarah and they moved slowly towards the bed and the both fell back onto it. They stayed as they were, in each others arms, and only Sarah moved, to cover them with a silken blanket. After she covered them, Sarah turned back to Jareth and tenderly kissed his lips, and Jareth ran his fingers through Sarah's long locks. Sarah laid her head on Jareth's chest, resting under Jareth's chin.

Jareth held Sarah and ran his fingertips along Sarah's back, and Sarah smiled as she remembered him doing it while she was sick before he proposed to her. She suddenly looked up at Jareth and said softly, "I lied…"

Jareth looked at her curiously and Sarah continued, "I don't hate you…" Jareth smirked and chuckled quietly as he answered, "No… you don't… I suppose I lied to you as well… I don't hate you…", tenderly.

Sarah slowly reached up and gently traced the cheek that she'd slapped and whispered faintly, "I'm sorry…"

Jareth just took the hand that Sarah was tracing his cheek with and kissed the fingertips. "No… I'm sorry…" He replied with a gentle whisper. Sarah smiled and Jareth kissed her fingertips again and placed her hand over his heart. He leaned his head down and kissed Sarah's head, and Sarah laid her head back on his chest.

They laid there until they quietly and happily fell asleep in each other's arms for the first time in a long time…

XXX 

Author's Note: I'd really meant for Sarah and Jareth to somewhat determine what they were going to do about the situation with Rory, but I decided to do that in the next chapter, and let them reunite after being apart for so long… And I'm sorry for the wait, I've been way, **way** too busy and I haven't had enough time to write a new chapter. I'm going to try to keep up with this better…


	7. Ch7: Please, Let Me Finish

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: First, I'd like to start out by apologizing to all my readers and by asking–no begging–for your forgiveness… I know I hate it when I get really involved in a story (Internet or otherwise) and then the story is brought to a screeching halt because either the author has not posted in forever or they have not been able to publish the next addition to the series.

I would like to be honest to my readers, especially after finding out I've had some very loyal ones, and I have to admit that I had a writer's block and I decided to give myself a break to recharge my batteries. I also needed time to decide where I wanted to go next in the story, because as I believe I mentioned in my first story _The Way Forward_, I really never have anything planned out, I just write when I have something off the top of my head. But soon that "break" turned into weeks, the weeks into months and now here we stand in the New Year, nearly 4 months since I last posted an update. Some could try to defend my actions, saying other authors take even longer to update, but I am not other authors and I don't feel my readers deserve that.

So I'd like, once again, to beg for forgiveness for my lack of decency to my readers and this story; for no excuse, however convincing it may be, would alleviate the circumstances–to me, at least….

In conclusion, I want to thank everyone for their positive reviews, I'm glad you all are enjoying the story so far, and keep writing reviews, I love to hear from my readers! I especially want to thank my loyal readers:

**Shanz**

**anj19841983**

**lounging-pixie,**

**serenaclutz (all of whom have stuck with me from my first story)**

**Anij **

**Katy16**

**comedychik84**

**wackystar88**

and

**PICTUREHOUSE**

Anywho, back to Rory now, I'd almost forgot about her… -laughs then abruptly stops, realizing no one is laughing with her- Kidding… -clears throat-

Anyways, I'll go back to Rory, but not just yet, I want to put a little more for Sarah and Jareth's… affaire d'amour… tee-hee… This will probably end up being just a little filler chapter…A little teensy, weensy inkle-bitty bit of **M-rated** material… Okay, it may be a little more than an inkle-bitty bit, but I still think that it's less then what I really could write… I know, I know, you are all just _so_ disappointed in me… But don't worry, you'll be more than satisfied. P.S. "inkle-bitty" is the British equivalent of the American "itty-bitty", I know this amazing British woman and she says it all the time…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own **Labyrinth**, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Seven: _Please Let Me Finish…_

Jareth was the first to wake that afternoon. As the soft, warm rays of light extended over the bed, Jareth's eyes slowly opened. He murmured sleepily and stretched his arms above his head. As he began to stretch, Sarah, who was still on top of Jareth, murmured quietly in her sleep and cuddled closer to Jareth. Jareth smiled as he watched her sleep peacefully and placed a kiss in her hair. As he kissed her, he breathed in her warming scent.

_Orange flowers… ginger… and honey-sandalwood… _Jareth thought contently. _You'll never know how much I've missed you, Sarah…_ her thought, stroking her hair.

Ever since Sarah's nightmares began, Jareth could feel Sarah slipping farther and farther away from him. He tried to make things work, but the more intense the nightmares got, the farther she slipped away. He eventually found himself waking in the middle of the night and not being able to fall back asleep with Sarah. He would begin doing various things throughout the castle, leaving Sarah by herself.

In addition to them growing apart emotionally and verbally, they began to grow apart physically too. Sarah never seemed to want to be with Jareth and the rare time that she did, Jareth's heart was not in it. He would withdraw, knowing he would rather not be with Sarah than be with her and not be able to give her the attention and affection she deserved from him.

That morning had been totally unexpected and without warning, but he sighed contently as he remembered the encounter.

"**_Oh, god, Jareth I've missed you…_**", she'd said.

Jareth had missed Sarah just as much and they had set their problems aside for a moment of satisfying, physical ecstasy that was much needed by both. With their love for the other spilling out of themselves and combining, their souls had found each other after losing one another for too long.

As Jareth happily thought of their reunion, Sarah murmured and sighed in her sleep. She sleepily rolled off of Jareth giving him enough room to reverse the position and rest lightly on top of her. He gazed at her as she slept and re-explored her body with hungry eyes.

He gently ran his fingertips along her silky, pale skin, delighting in the feeling of its cool, smoothness under his touch. He watched her chest rise up and down and he slowly and gently placed kisses along her stomach.

As he placed soft kisses along her stomach, Jareth couldn't help but think, _I can hardly wait until Sarah carries our child…_ True they had been married for a while, but Sarah had not come close to bearing a child. Jareth never let on his slight disappointment, but he let things be as Sarah told him how she was not in a hurry.

"I'm not worried… When it's meant to happen, it will happen…" Sarah said simply. And Jareth couldn't help but agree with Sarah's logic.

He continued his kisses and he soon felt fingers running through his blonde locks. He looked up and saw his angel's face gazing down on him adoringly. He moved back up to her and kissed her devotedly. They gazed into each other's eyes, their fingers grazing over the others body.

Jareth kissed Sarah's lips softly then, putting soft kisses along her jaw, worked his way to her earlobe. Nibbling on it gently, he whispered, "I love you, Sarah…"

Her mouth close to his ear, she whispered back, "And I love you, Jareth…"

Jareth gazed back into her eyes and kissed her again, his love apparent in his kisses. Sarah broke from their kiss and said playfully, "So are you gonna keep me here forever?"

Jareth grinned impishly and pinned Sarah's arms above her head, his face millimeters from hers.

"I just might… and if I do, just what do you intend to do about it?" he said devishly, kissing her passionately. Sarah returned the kiss and Jareth broke and began to give the same attention to her neck. He came closer to her breasts and Sarah suddenly rolled on top of him and began kissing him as passionately as he had her.

"You underestimate the power of the Goblin Queen…" Sarah said with false chastisement. Jareth chuckled in the back of his throat as Sarah began to kiss him again and began his same movements, kissing his neck. She trailed kisses all along his chest, her hands feeling every muscle in his pale chest. As she continued kissing his chest, her hands continued to wander lower and lower, dangerously.

Jareth suddenly rolled on top of her and caressed her with a building passion. He kissed her ardently, his hands exploring the gentle curves of her body.

"You play with fire, Your Highness…" Jareth warned, with a lustful look that gave away his thoughts.

Sarah grinned at him and rolled on top of him, kissing him, then replying, "Well let's hope it isn't too dangerous… You know how quickly fire can spread…"

Jareth let out a untamed groan as he felt the slow, tortuous caress of Sarah's soft lips move slowly from the lobe of his ear down his jaw, graze the tender flesh of his pale, slender neck all the way down his collarbone; the tender, sensual feeling mixing with the feeling of the delicate, but intentional presence of her soft, creamy breasts crushing deliciously to his pale, muscular chest. Sarah watched Jareth's responses to her actions and calculated her next movement from them. Feeling him harden beneath her, she enticingly moved against him, begging his body for a response.

"Do you feel that Jareth? It's that feeling way deep down… In the depths of your soul… You can't deny it, Jareth… Even if you wanted to, you can't fight that flame that's inside you… the flame only _I_ can ignite…" Sarah crooned seductively into Jareth's ear.

Sarah listened to Jareth's uneven breath for only a moment before she was flipped over, completely off guard, and Jareth's mouth was savagely ravishing hers. As his fierce mouth moved down her throat, he savagely took one of her perfect breasts in her mouth, causing Sarah to arch back as electricity she only found with Jareth shot through her body. Sarah couldn't stop the wanton, lustful breath from escaping her slightly parted lips.

"God you're lucky you have the same effect on me…" she sighed, consumed in the pleasure Jareth played upon her body. Jareth chuckled as he made his way back up to her lips and began to claim them as his again.

"It really has been too long, Sarah…" Jareth said, tantalizingly as they continued in the renewal of the exploration of each other's bodies. Just the pure thought that they had found each other again after being apart for so long brought tears to Sarah's eyes as she joined numerous times with the one soul in the universe that had ever made her feel as complete as she'd ever felt in her whole life.

XXX 

Rory sat in her room, nervously brushing through her hair. She hadn't actually taken a brush to her hair in years, but it was always a calming moment for Rory when her mother brushed her hair (or attempted to at least), and Rory was trying to stay as calm as possible.

Hours ago, Sarah had gone to talk to Jareth and she had not returned to Rory with any news. Rory didn't know whether to take Sarah's absence as a good thing or a bad thing.

_I mean, I guess I was kind of rude to Jareth… I just can't believe how condescending he was! But then again, I was kind of a potty-mouth… But he was so overbearing!! But I was pretty childish… Gosh, why is this so complicated… It didn't even seem this complicated back home! Back home…_ Rory suddenly thought about Aboveground and her situation.

_Oh, I hope they're working things out… And I hope they're not fighting… But I hope they're not messing around…_ Rory thought anxiously.

XXX 

Sarah lay beside Jareth on her stomach, Jareth on his side watching her, tracing lazy patterns on her back lightly with his fingertips, both still naked; basking in each other's presence. Jareth felt his heart warm as he saw a slow, content smile spread across Sarah's face. He knew she loved the feeling of him tracing her back as he was doing now and he was more than happy to satisfy her. He loved the little intimate moments he spent with her, appreciating them even more after all they'd been through.

His brow furrowed at the cruel and punishing memories of almost losing Sarah that had haunted him for so long. He had no idea what he had done to deserve getting Sarah back after nearly losing her. But one thing was sure the day she found her way back: he would be there for her every time, and he would make sure she was happy, no matter what it meant, no matter what it took.

Thinking of Sarah's happiness brought his thoughts to Rory: the rebellious, troublesome teenager that had (in his opinion) rather rudely intruded in their lives. But in the moment he saw Sarah's smile, he remembered a similar smile grace her face. It had been that previous night, the night Rory came to the Underground, not even a full 24 hours ago. He had watched silently and nonchalantly as Sarah took great care to see to Rory being comfortable.

After Sagira had come and helped, given Sarah and Jareth a reassuring pat on the arm and left, Jareth watched Sarah. She'd sat on the edge of the bed, next to the sleeping Rory, watching her contently. She stroked her wild red hair, smoothing it gently and tucking it behind her ear. Despite his consternation at the thought of bringing Rory to the Underground (and despite the unforgettable reality that Toby had left Rory in Sarah's care), he found himself forgetting the circumstances and watching Sarah.

She was naturally maternal, as he had seen often in the goblin nursery, but there was something about her actions that made her behavior different than previous times; the look of longing and devotedness in her eyes as she studied her sleeping niece. Jareth found it hard to deny the unmistakable likeness Rory bore to her father (even with the obvious physical and personality traits from her mother), and then he realized; Rory was Sarah's way of doing right by Toby. He saw the same love and dedication shining in Sarah's eyes while she looked upon Rory as he'd seen all those years ago as she'd frantically searched for Toby.

In that moment, Jareth realized that even though the path ahead that Rory had uncovered before them was a path that Sarah was about to walk; and he was not going to let her walk it alone.

The soft murmur of Sarah's voice yanked Jareth from his deep thoughts.

"What is it?" Sarah murmured, softly, her own brow furrowing his after seeing his face in a similar state.

"Oh…It's nothing…" Jareth said fleetingly, attempting to shake Sarah's concern off.

"Jareth, I know it's not nothing…" Sarah said, firmly but gently. She gently moved her hand out and placed her palm softly on Jareth's jaw, tenderly raising his gaze, which he'd attempted to divert, to hers. "Please tell me…"

Jareth studied her pale but glowing skin for a moment then reading her eyes, he realized her eyes were shining not only the same way they'd been shining looking at Toby and Rory, they were the shining the same way the moment before they'd become husband and wife. An indescribable and inconceivable satisfaction and ease flowed through his body at a consistent rate, causing a shiver to run up his spine.

_I'll never doubt you again, Sarah…_ Jareth thought as the realization of his actions towards Rory became clear as he looked upon Sarah's unyieldingly supportive expression and thought back to his harsh words that he'd thrust upon her earlier: "**_And I don't believe choosing someone you didn't even know existed for 15 years over someone you made believe you unconditionally loved is anyway to be a 'friend', since you've so obviously made it clear that your love has certain conditions…_**"

Jareth shuddered at the memory. He took the hand that rested gently on his cheek and affectionately kissed the palm and took a deep breath, mentally preparing himself to bear his soul for only the third time in his life; comforted with the fact that every time had been with this amazing woman before him.

"I was thinking about our dear Rory…" he said, keeping his tone a diplomatic as he could.

"Jareth, I know this has been kind of hard on you, but if you could just—" Sarah began to babble, but was silence by two of Jareth's pale, slender fingers touching her lips.

"Please, let me finish…" Jareth murmured resolutely. Sarah closed her mouth and regarded Jareth with accepting eyes as he withdrew his hand and continued.

"I have not given you nor Rory a fair chance at this situation. I do believe that taking Rory in is the right thing to do, but just because it is the right thing doesn't mean I _want_ to take her in…

"I have been acting indifferent to you all this time because I was angry… angry at Rory because I believed that she'd been driving us apart… Ever since you began having the dreams of her and Toby and Delilah… I felt like I was losing you… You seemed to care more about them, when you didn't even know if they were real, than you did about me…

"You said that I wasn't supporting you in your decision to take in Rory, and even before that…" he said, and when Sarah started to open her mouth, he gently closed her mouth and still holding her chin, stroked her chin and lips tenderly while he continued.

"…And you were right. You deserved my support in the time you needed support the most. And you were right… again. I did promise you to support you, the day I married you… but I'd promised you that the moment I fell in love with you…even though you didn't know it…"

At his tender, profound words, Sarah found it difficult to keep her tears from trickling down her cheeks and her breath at an even rhythm; it didn't take long for her to fail at the endeavors that were quickly becoming more and more hopeless.

"And then when we finally met face to face for the first time, I remember the emotions that were appearing on your face… Fear, worry, awe… but I'll never forget the flicker of an emotion, perhaps two emotions, both of which I could see faintly in your eyes… yes there were two emotions I saw that immediately intrigued me…

I swore that I faintly saw enchantment and adoration… The moment I saw these emotions for no more than a fleeting second in your eyes, I made a promise to myself that I _would _see those two looks in your eyes again, no matter what it took. And after much conniving and slyness… I saw the enchantment in your eyes again…"

Sarah, not wanting to exasperate Jareth any further by attempting to talk, gave Jareth a mystified expression, attempting to prompt further clarification.

Jareth smiled as he saw Sarah's mind try to fathom when she might have shown him some sort of enchantment and added, "…in _your_ fantasy, the ball…" and his smile grew as he watched a flattering, but most likely unwanted blush appear on Sarah's cheeks.

"Oh, Sarah when I danced with you… oh, I just never wanted it to end… When I saw that look of enchantment in your eyes, I didn't want to let you go, because…" he took a breath, and continued, "…I thought that if I held on long enough, I'd see the adoration, too…

"And then you broke away, even then you chose continue your journey to retrieve Toby, the adoration for him had by that point been completely uncovered. And… I was mad! Mad at little Toby, but I became madder at you! No matter what I did, you wouldn't give me that same look of adoration, not even a small bit…

"So now you may understand why I kept trying to delay you reaching Toby; whether it was by using my goblins or making you run on a wild goose chase in the Escher room. It was all to try and buy more time… not for you, but for _us_… for us to be together so I could see the adoration in your eyes…

"But, I admit, I had already been hurt by your rejection in your dream and your obvious, unrestricted adoration and dedication to retrieving Toby didn't help the pain, so you now know why I allowed my cat and mouse came in the Escher room go on for so long… I wanted you to be as tortured, discouraged, and exasperated as I felt… I wasn't lying when I rather callously sang 'You starve and near exhaust me'…"

Sarah felt a slight shiver go up her spine as she remembered his hard, cruel eyes that had filled her with guilt as she'd raced to reach Toby in that confounding maze room. She'd been far too young to understand her feelings about Jareth at the time, but it wasn't difficult to understand the feelings and misgivings that seared into her soul as Jareth had stared back at her tortuously as he sang to her about how _her_ eyes could be so cruel!

"And after you defeated me and my labyrinth… I really did think that I'd lost you forever and that I'd never be lucky enough to see that adoration in your eyes… But then when you wished yourself away… I got a second chance…" he continued, and he took the hand that had been near her face and began to trace her jaw line with the back of his hand.

"A second chance at seeing that adoration… and winning your love…" he said, the sincerity and love so evident in his voice and eyes that Sarah felt the tears spilling down her face, _again_, without her permission. Jareth gently wiped away the tears as they tried to trickle to the ones that had gathered on the bedspread below her face.

"I never saw more adoration in your eyes than the day you married me… It was so bright I couldn't help smiling and I knew that you could see the same in mine, for you smiled in return…

"But then I began to lose you, just like I had almost lost you to that disease…" Jareth continued, his face and body tensing at the dreadful memory. Sarah immediately began stroking Jareth's body comfortingly, moving from his shoulders to his arms then back up his shoulders until she began stroking his face. With the hand that had not been brushing away tears, Jareth held her hand to his face, closing his eyes and taking in the comforting softness of her hand. His eyes opened eventually and he continued.

"I was afraid I was losing you, your love, and your devotion… And when you brought Rory here, I saw the love and dedication in your eyes when you looked at her… and then I saw _it_ too…" he took a deep breath and elaborated, "…the devotion… And I couldn't help it, but that old jealousy I'd felt when I saw you risking your well-being for Toby as you began risking yourself again for Rory…"

Sarah let out a crooning breath as she finally realized from Jareth's point of view the reason of his actions: his jealousy.

"And finally, this morning, I was prepared to attempt to get the upper hand in a battle of wits with you, but as you began to corner me and accuse me I felt like there was no swaying your mind, as usual.

Soon after I'd gone too far in accusing you and you slapped me and we spat those things both of us knew we didn't mean… I knew that I just _had_ to get through to you somehow and I knew that if I didn't, I would lose you… for good. So I took a risk and kissed you with all the pent up emotion I had building inside of me and poured it into you in an attempt to get through to you…" Jareth paused and smirked deviously at Sarah while he added, "…and it worked…"

Sarah blushed and laughed softly as she remembered their frantic coupling only hours earlier, frantic in every meaning of the word; they hadn't even made it to the bed!

"And, oh God, Sarah when you said you missed me… I felt the most overwhelming relief because I'd missed you so much as well… And… I don't want to ever lose you… I'd suffered enough after you defeated me and the Labyrinth and left because I thought I'd lost you… but you returned to me and I almost lost you _again_ while you were here… I don't know what I would do if I were to really, truly lose you…" Jareth finished, the emotion of bearing his feelings unsolicited to Sarah draining him mentally, emotionally and physically, causing him to begin sob which lead to hyperventilating ever so slightly.

"Jareth… Oh, Jareth, you didn't lose me… You'll never _ever_ lose me… You've got to believe that… Oh, god, I'm so sorry for making you think that you came anywhere close to…" Sarah crooned and whispered to Jareth as she moved to him and took him in her embrace, cradling him as close to her as she could.

"Listen… listen to me, Jareth… Do you hear that?" Sarah asked gently but urgently. Jareth's head was pressed up against her chest, her hands soothingly stroking his wild blonde hair.

"Do you hear that, Jareth?" She said and Jareth at first confused at what Sarah wanted him to hear, suddenly heard Sarah's heartbeat, beating at a steady, unchanging heartbeat.

"That's my heart… beating for you, Jareth… My heart belongs to you, and I will be a constant in your life just my heart is constant in its beat that keeps me alive…" She said with a passionate seriousness.

Jareth felt a peace settle over him and ever so slowly he brought his now calmed gaze up to Sarah's and studied her. Seeing she had his attention, she stroked his face, tracing the contours of his face until she settled her fingertips lightly on his lips and said softly, "I love you, Jareth… I'll _always_ love you… and I'll _always_ be here… _always_."

Hearing the firm resolution in her voice and seeing the unconditional passion in her eyes, he felt compelled to let her know he reciprocated what she said, and he slowly brought his head up to her and kissed her. His kiss wasn't timid but it wasn't fraught with unbridled passion. It was a kiss that both used to communicate to the other their devotion for each other.

Author's Note: Okay, so I really meant for Rory to have more of an appearance in this chapter, but after not updating for so long and after leaving all of you guys off with that last chapter, I felt like it was time for Jareth to be completely open with Sarah and get everything off his chest… That and once I started typing from Jareth's point of view, I got into it and was on a roll… u So I'm making a late New Year's promise to make sure I don't take 4 months to update the next time… -bows with humility to loyal readers-


	8. Ch8: I Can't Do Anything Right, Can I?

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: A bit of _**M-Rated**_ material here… Okay more than a bit, but I couldn't help it… the words practically wrote themselves…

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Eight: _I Can't Do Anything Right, Can I?_

Rory was getting impatient. Sarah had left to go talk to Jareth after breakfast; yet, Sagira had taken away Rory's trays from _**dinner**_ hours (which felt like centuries) ago, and no word from Sarah. Not one. Rory had counted all the tiles in the floor, walls, and ceiling of her room. She'd taken 2 baths (just out of sheer boredom). She had rearranged the furniture in her room. Three times. She had tried on ¾ of the clothes in her never-ending girly closet. Rory was getting _very_ impatient.

_WHAT THE HELL IS TAKING HER SO LONG?!?! I MEAN, SHE LEAVES ME HERE, NO ADVICE ON WHAT TO DO, HOW TO AMUSE MYSELF! I HAVE NO IPOD, NO COMPUTER, NO TV, NO RADIO, NO VIDEOGAMES…NOT EVEN A BOOK! I'D SETTLE FOR A DECORATIVE BOOK ON THE DESK BUT DO I EVEN HAVE THAT?!?!?! _Rory thought furiously.

_I MEAN, SERIOUSLY?!?!? SERIOUSLY!?!?!? I'D SETTLE FOR ONE NEWSPAPER CLIPPING IF A BOOK WERE TOO MUCH!! HOW CAN I POSSIBLY LIVE HERE IF I'M ALREADY GOING OUT OF MY MIND!!!!!!!!!!!?????_

There was a sudden knock at the door, jolting Rory from her thoughts. She ran from where she'd been pacing to the door, desperate for human interaction…. _Any_ human interaction…..

"Ahem… Rory, I was wondering if I could have a word with you?" Jareth greeted her as she opened the door.

Rory stood speechless for a moment, not answering. _Well… maybe not __**any**__ human interaction…. Is being the Goblin King technically considered 'human'?_

"Uuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh……" was all Rory was finally able to verbalize.

"I realize that I'm probably the last person you might want to be talking to right now, but—" Jareth began again.

"Where's Sarah?" Rory butted in (after finally gathering her chaotic thoughts enough to form a coherent sentence).

"Uuuuuuuuhhhhhhhhhh……" Now it was Jareth's turn to be at a loss for words. "Uh, well you see….. she's actually asleep right now…"

"SHE'S ASLEEP?!?!?!" Rory couldn't keep her shock from making her voice a tad high-pitched.

"Uh, yes…. Well… she wanted to come and talk to you but, she was really quite exhausted, she's had a…." he paused to clear his throat, "….very emotionally and, uh, physically draining day……"

Rory was truly at a loss for words and couldn't do anything but stand in her doorway and stare at Jareth as if he was speaking Russian to her.

Jareth, who usually is able to keep up a pretty stoic façade, appeared very uncomfortable standing in Rory's doorway in awkward silence.

Rory, shook her head, trying to shake off her dismay at Sarah sleeping the day away, in order to say, "Um, yeah… you wanted something?"

"Hmmm? Oh yes! I was wondering if I could have a word with you…if that isn't a… an inconvenience to you, that is…" Jareth said.

"Uh, sure…" Rory stepped aside to give Jareth room to enter her room.

"Thank you…" Jareth said, carefully stepping by Rory into her room.

"No problem…" Rory muttered to herself, closing the door behind him.

_Why is he here?!?!?! Didn't he just tell me off this morning?!?!?!?!?!?!_, she thought.

Jareth walked midway into Rory's room and turned towards her. Rory stood at the door, her back pressed against it. They both stood for another moment in silence and Rory inched her way away from the door to take a seat on the edge of her bed. They remained in silence until Jareth cleared his throat again.

"Ahem… well…I just… I just… I wanted to explain about this morning…" Jareth said.

"Yeah, some sort of explanation would be nice…" Rory snapped, too tartly.

Jareth stopped and stared at Rory for a moment then answered back, "While I may have been condescending to you, you were being rather cheeky and impertinent to me..."

"Well excuse me for defending myself when I'm being belittled like a child by someone I don't even know!" Rory shot back.

"You never gave me the proper chance to introduce myself and tell you our relation!" Jareth answered quickly.

"And you never gave me the chance to get to know you! You just stayed on your pedestal, talking down to me!" Rory answered just as quickly.

Jareth had opened his mouth to spit back an answer, but nothing came out. She'd stumped him again. After a moment, he regained his thoughts said, "Well it's not like I woke up this morning thinking, 'Oooh, my wife's gone to the Aboveground, which she hasn't been to in 25 years, and brought her rebellious niece back to live with us indefinitely. I feel like making said niece's life a living hell by torturing her and insulting her!' I mean, of course, that sounds completely plausible to me…"

The sarcasm dripped off Jareth's words. But Rory was just as fluent in sarcasm.

"So you think the whole debacle this morning was _my_ fault!? Since you so obviously gave me a chance to explain myself and get to know you as you began to list to me all the reasons I make your life so full of happiness… You know, like me creating "an uncomfortable space" between you and Sarah… Because I've had a lot of time on my hands to ruin your life, you know, in between losing my parents and living in a foster home with foster parents who don't give a damn about me!!!"

Jareth just sat in stunned silence again. It was rather ironic, but he was getting to know Rory better through fighting than having a normal conversation. That whole scene just a moment ago in her doorway proved that much.

With the floor still open to her, Rory continued.

"If you really have such a problem with me, then you will just have to put on your big boy 'knickers'—or whatever you people call them—and deal with it! Because I have _**nothing**_ waiting for me back 'Aboveground'… And I've finally found something I've never had before…" Rory started to choke up, holding back the tears enough to say, "…I've found happiness with family I never thought I had…. Family that hadn't existed for me until last night… So while I've had some terrible losses, I've had an amazing stroke of luck in finding Sarah… she's become the guardian angel sent to me in my darkest hour… So you've got some nerve talking about 'me putting space between you and Sarah' when that's all that you seem hell-bent on doing to _me_…."

For the innumerable time, Jareth sat in astonishment of this petite redhead that had suddenly appeared in his life, without his consent, and had turned his world… But he wasn't going to let this girl make such blatant accusations towards him.

"Well, it just seems I can't do anything right, can I?" he said, in a rather whiny voice, following Rory's heartfelt confession.

Rory studied his incredulous expression for a moment. She cast her eyes down with a sigh, shook her head, as if admitting something to herself, then made her way to the doorway.

"You know what? For someone who prides himself on his prominence and reputation, you seriously need to work on your people skills." Rory said simply.

Jareth stood there, once again, flabbergasted by this young girl, who despite her crude behavior and language was…surprisingly wise… surprising wisdom from a 16-year-old.

"Now… I'd appreciate it if you left my room now… I'd much prefer speaking with your wife, if you don't mind…" Rory stated, opening the door and standing waiting for him to leave.

This time, Jareth was the one to stare at Rory as if she were speaking Russian to him! But without a word, he strode past her and left her room. Rory watched silently as he left, and quietly shut the door behind him.

When the door was closed behind her, Rory pressed her back against it and slowly slid down to the floor, and began sobbing.

Jareth was pacing around the corridors outside his and Sarah's bedroom. He'd been too afraid that his pacing would've eventually woken Sarah up. His head had been buzzing with thoughts after his most recent fight with Rory.

_Maybe this is the way it is supposed to be…_ Jareth thought, _I mean, I hardly did anything __**but**__ fight with Sarah when she first arrived here… Maybe it's just the Williams lineage… all the women are stubborn and difficult…. It's not their fault, it's their heredity, they can't help it… it's like blue eyes or green eyes, and somebody ends up getting the gene… _

_WHAT, WHAT AM I TALKING ABOUT?!?!? Rory's behavior wasn't a quirk of her heredity that she acquired from her family, it was the result of the tragic loss of her parents, and the psychological agony she suffered at the hands of her foster family…I must try to see this from her perspective, because that seems to be where I am failing… She was right… go figure, the 16-year-old gives me the wisest advice I've heard in a long time… she could seriously give the Wiseman a run for the money…_

"Jareth?" a soft voice suddenly sounded.

Jareth lifted his gaze from the path he'd been traveling up to the doorway of their bedroom. Sarah was standing in the doorway, with nothing but her silk robe wrapped around her.

Jareth felt his heart grow a size larger as he looked at his wife. She just emitted such warmth and radiance, even with tousled hair from sleeping the day away. He slowly approached Sarah, and put his hands on her shoulders, looking her in the face.

"I'm sorry, darling… I didn't mean to wake you…" Jareth said calmly, his hands moving down her arms as he bent to kiss her forehead.

"It wasn't your pacing that woke me up, Jareth…" Sarah said, almost laughing at him. Jareth gave her a confused look, prompting her to clarify.

"I am deprived of your presence whilst I sleep for so long, only to have you at my side every moment I open my eyes…." As she spoke, Sarah moved her hands along Jareth's shirt, moving her hands up until she had wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling their faces closer together.

"…then I am spoiled with your constant proximity, you at my side…" then Sarah lowered her voice as she intimately said, "…making love to me in the height of our passion and longing for each others bodies…" Jareth smirked as Sarah slowly brought her lips to his in a soft, but stimulating kiss.

"….but then…" Sarah pulled herself out of Jareth's grasp, "…I am back to the deprivation of your warm body next to mine…" Sarah grinned teasingly, and added, "so… needless to say, it wasn't your pacing that woke me up, Jareth…"

Jareth chuckled, but underneath the laughter, was an agenda of his own as he gazed upon Sarah, who was now an arm's length away from him.

"…You always were able to read me like a book… although I much prefer your passionate, intense…" Jareth came closer to Sarah, dipping his head down, his breath warm on the nape of her neck, "…sensual words…"

Sarah let a lustful gasp escape her lips as Jareth's warm breath made its way up her neck as his hands made it's way up from her hips, all along the curves of her body just below her breasts.

"…Jareth…" Sarah breathed, but was interrupted as Jareth's skillful hands moved along her sides, gently grazing the curves in the sides of her breasts.

"Now what kind of a husband would I be if I didn't satisfy the needs of my wife…? Hmm?" Jareth murmured, continuing the agonizing sensual torture he was setting loose upon Sarah's body and senses.

"Or… what kind of _lover_ would I be if I didn't satisfy the _desires_ of my partner…? If I didn't slake her lust…?" he whispered, his expert fingers slowly snaking their ways around her breasts.

Sarah all but fell into Jareth's hands as her mind became hazy and all she could think of were the sensations Jareth was driving throughout her body. Sarah's hand found Jareth's hand and held it fast to her breast as her lips sought his. Jareth sensed Sarah's titillation but brought their passion to a slower pace, wanting her to feel the extent and immensity of his longing and desire for her.

He slowly and carefully backed her into the room, having complete control of her body as he, of course, had complete control over her mind at the present time. Closing the door, he led her into their bedroom, stopping her near their bed.

"Now…let me rule you, Sarah…. And you can have," he bowed his head down to her, and letting his lips and breath brush the soft skin of her ear as he uttered, "_**everything**_ that you want…"

"Everything…" Sarah murmured, her eyes closed, and her thoughts too scrambled and hazy to form coherent statements.

"…Just fear me…. Love me… Do as I say, and I will be your _**slave**_…"

"My slave…" Sarah murmured quietly.

"…I _**am**_ your slave Sarah… I have been……..And I always _**will be**_…" he continued, his lips placing feather-light kisses along her jawbone, the corners of her lips, and her eyelids, which were still closed.

"Now… keep your eyes closed, Sarah…I'll guide you…" Jareth said, gently.

Sarah made no motion but just placing her hand near his, which during his eloquence had found its way to her collarbone and had been drawing lazy patterns on her skin. Jareth took the hand brought it to his lips, and kissed it gently, with the kisses becoming more and more bold.

Sarah's breathing became shallow as she could feel the warmness of Jareth's mouth on her skin. As he opened his mouth, she could feel the sweet, warm, dampness of his tongue, flitting over her skin fleetingly. God, she wanted to feel that everywhere, she wanted him to taste the rest of her… She wanted to taste him!

Jareth suddenly gave Sarah's hands a new task, as he moved them to his chest, bringing them to his shirt. Sarah began to open her eyes, but Jareth's voice came softly and commandingly.

"No… not yet…" he said, never once stopping the guidance of her hands at his shirt, unbuttoning it slowly but surely. He guided her hands to ease the shirt off his strong shoulders, and Sarah reveled in the smooth coolness of his skin. He then guided her hands down the front of his torso, over the ripples of his muscles, and down to his pants. His pants revealed the magnitude of his arousal, and feeling it through his pants only served to heighten Sarah's own arousal. He guided her hands in slowly undressing his last clothing while he kicked off his boots. Many times had Sarah had her hands placed on Jareth in this position, but never in this manner; with this heightened, sensational libidinous intent. Sarah felt like the feelings and tingling that had been gathering between her legs was about to burst.

If Sarah felt like she was going to burst, Jareth felt like he was going to explode! The feel of Sarah's smooth, graceful hands on his body was enough to drive him insane, but he knew that it drove Sarah insane as well; so it only served to heighten her anticipation and desire.

Jareth continued his seduction as he pulled her reluctant hands away from his body. Sarah felt Jareth's hands guide her towards their bed, but was disappointed when his hands made her stop.

"Now… you're going to open your eyes, Sarah, but only when I tell you to…" Jareth said, his voice husky. Sarah could only nod, as any other form of communication had escaped her.

Jareth's hands were at the sides of her face, tracing its contours and details, while his eyes devoured her beauty and the look of pure surrender on her face. His fingers made their way down her jaw, tracing the veins in her neck, trailing along her collarbone, then sliding his hands down her shoulders and arms. The found her waist and his hands snaked their way up her back, pulling her closer inch by inch as they traced lazy patterns along the small of her back.

Sarah gasped as Jareth's apt fingertips slid along her back, always loving when he intimately touched her back that way. Then his hands moved to the sides of her waist, gripping her hips and suddenly pulling them against his own hips. Sarah moaned as she felt his erection pressing against her lower abdomen, cursing the thin silky fabric of her robe for separating them.

Jareth gently began grinding his hips with Sarah's, slowly and consciously with every intention of driving her over the edge: and it did. Sarah would've ripped the robe into shreds in that very moment if it insured her melting into Jareth's body, but her brain refused to tell her hands to do it, for the sensation of Jareth's hips grinding into hers was numbing her mind.

Reluctantly, Jareth stopped, and unknotted the front of Sarah's robe. Sarah stood stock-still, completely unaware of what to expect with her eyes still closed. Jareth moved around her and slowly slid her robe off from behind. Sarah stood there, in all her glory, completely at Jareth's mercy.

Jareth's hands were at Sarah's hips again, as his husky voice uttered, "…Open your eyes…"

Sarah's eyes fluttered open and she looked down to see Jareth adept hands snaking their way across her stomach and up taking hold of her breasts. Sarah gasped as one began to tease an aroused nipple. As the other hand began to mimic the first hand, Sarah's head fell back against Jareth's shoulder in total submission. When her head fell against his shoulder, Jareth pulled Sarah back against him. Sarah groaned as she felt Jareth's erection pressing against her bottom as he stroked her breasts, teasing them and titillating them.

Sarah didn't even feel Jareth moving her onto their bed, in a kneeling position. Jareth's hands were situating her into a position desirable to his plan. Sarah took in her surrounding, then began to look and see what position she'd been placed in, taking in how she faced their headboard, on her knees with her legs spread, and her bottom sticking out. She looked around, attempting to find Jareth, but then suddenly felt his hand along her backside.

His hands began to tease her opening, and Sarah groaned softly as Jareth inserted his fingers and began to test her… His fingers stretched her, feeling to see the extent of how far he could take her, and playing her until she had to hold fast to the headboard to keep herself from convulsing.

"God… you're so warm…" Jareth said, as his fingers continued to play upon her senses and further heighten her building need for release, her contented moans echoing through their bedroom.

"Oh, god, Jareth, don't make me wait anymore!" Sarah begged until Jareth withdrew his fingers, and began trailing a line of kisses up along her spine up to her neck, until he could rest his chin on her shoulder, his mouth inches from her ear. His hands gripped her hips again and he sheathed himself deeply within her. When he was inside her to the fullest extent, Sarah cried out loudly with a lust-filled satisfaction.

Jareth let out a shuttering breath as he entered her. God, she was so warm and silky smooth around him, he felt like he was losing his mind! He paused a moment for her to taking in the feeling of him filling her, but he was desperate for her body, and he couldn't fight his urge to push. He nipped her ear gently, and pulled himself up off her torso, and with a firm hold on her hips, Jareth began thrusting slowly and tortuously in and out of her.

As Jareth continued to fill her again and again and again, Sarah savored the fulfillment she got and delighted and took pleasure in the sensations Jareth was creating within her, entering her from such an angle. It was pure bliss, feeling Jareth so deep within her, claiming her body as he had already claimed her mind and soul.

They were so close, so unbelievably close; yet she still wanted to be closer! She found herself pushing herself down upon Jareth, using the headboard to give her leverage. As they began to move at a rhythm and pace, Jareth's hands made their way all along Sarah's body, then coming to rest at her breasts again and began teasing them as he continued to fill the space between her legs.

Sarah's moans of pleasure continued to grow louder and higher-pitched, and Jareth could feel her muscles awaiting their release. He was coming close to his own, and he knew that the pleasure he'd been giving her was pushing her towards the edge, but she needed that one push to completely go over it.

Jareth's hands found their way around the front of her thighs and slid higher and higher until they reached their destination, and then one finger began to stroke her with reckless abandon. That touch was all that was needed as Sarah threw back her head, arching her back and cried out, feeling a her climax grip her from the ends of her hair to the tips of her toes, in orgasmic waves of sensual and erotic indulgence.

Jareth felt Sarah's climax as her muscles tightened and clamped tightly around him, setting him over the edge. As he spilled himself into her, he held her hips roughly as he pumped his hips, digging his nails into her hips, sheathing himself in her tight silkiness to the hilt.

As they both came back down to earth, their bodies trembling, they both-in a manner-collapsed. Jareth withdrew himself, giving Sarah space to fall onto the bed, flipping over. Jareth took the opportunity to kiss every inch of Sarah's body until he mindfully laid down on top of her, kissing her. Sarah wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck as she kissed him, silently thanking him for the best physical ecstasy of her _life_.

Jareth's lips left Sarah's slowly, lingering, before he laid his head down on her chest, resting his head under her chin. Sarah placed a kiss into Jareth's wild mane and began running her fingers through his long tresses peacefully.

"God, I'll never be bored of that…" Jareth said suddenly.

Sarah giggled as she put both hands on either side of Jareth's face, bringing his gaze up to her.

"I should hope not… If we are, then we are in for some serious trouble, because…" she paused put a lingering kiss on Jareth's lips, then smirked as she mimicked Jareth's accent, "… _I_ rather enjoyed that…"

Jareth's lips formed a wicked smile as his lips crushed Sarah's lips again, and he rolled over, pulling her on top of him.

"Well I better not have to do all the work next time…" he said jokingly.

"Oh, don't worry… you won't…" she added, beginning to trail her lips down his jaw, kissing his neck, allowing her tongue to linger along his skin. Jareth let out his breath as Sarah slid lower and lower, kissing his chest and moving further and further down.

Jareth chuckled and said in a teasingly sarcastic voice, "Well aren't we confident…?"

To answer him, Sarah grabbed his part suddenly, causing him to gasp, his body tensing.

"Yes… I do believe that I won't be doing much work will I?" he said, not really expecting an answer.

All Sarah did was continue to pleasure Jareth, determined to throw him over the edge into the abyss of passion and carnal indulgence; just like had done to her.

Author's Note: See?! Admit it! You didn't want it to end… Anyway, I've been thinking about the angle I want to take this, so I'll start writing the new chapter soon, and I'll really try to stay more with this than I have….


	9. Ch9: Choosing the Path

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: Okay so yeah got some Rory action last chapter, and some… ahem, Sarah and Jareth action, if I do say so myself… But I've kinda started to get an idea of where I want to take this now… So I thought Midori served as kind of an informative character for Sarah in _The Way Forward_, so I figured to expand Sagira's character a little more as she becomes a friend to Rory, and not only her information source, but also her confidante… So I hope it goes well!

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Nine: _Choosing the Path Between the Stars…_

The next morning, Rory was desperate to see Sarah. Talking with Jareth had done nothing but upset her, and besides Sagira and the other occasional servant that came to do something like make her bed or draw her bath, she really hadn't talked with anyone else. And no one could explain explicitly why Sarah hadn't come to see her. Sagira had really been the only one to really give a first hand account of witnessing something.

"You see, after Sarah brought you back to your room," Sagira said, "she passed by me and asked me if I'd seen Jareth, and I told her I hadn't, and she continued looking for him… Other servants told me they'd pasted by her and she seemed quite agitated that she couldn't find him; but like I'd told her, when Jareth seems to be nowhere, he's usually made himself disappear to wherever he goes. But somehow he has some sort of omnipresence and is usually able to hear and see everything around the castle…." Sagira paused and leaned closer to Rory and said, "…which is why you must always choose your words carefully, because you never know who may be listening…" Sagira paused again and brought Rory into a side room and closed the door, but still kept her voice down.

"So… after I heard this, I decided to see for myself the seriousness of Sarah's desperate need to find Jareth, and I went to their private bedroom first… As I approached, I heard fighting, so I paused around the corner, and I saw Sarah and Jareth in the hallway fighting, but I couldn't make out what they were fighting about… and then suddenly Sarah slapped Jareth… I'll never forget the shock on his face, and Sarah muttered something to him, and Jareth responded with, 'I hate you…' and then they began to repeat back and forth to each other, growing louder and louder, and as they did, I shrank back further and further….

"Let me tell you something, Rory, I've grown up in this castle, serving Jareth ever since I was young… That was after your aunt defeated him and left him alone… He was inexplicably moody… One moment he'd be depressed, the next he'd be throwing a tantrum, yelling, sometimes throwing things…. But… then Sarah returned… I hadn't known of their previous history, but I noticed that he began to change… he acted differently… I mean, when she first arrived, they fought…but I'd never heard them use the word, 'hate', because deep down, you could really tell they held back emotions for each other and the longer your aunt was here, the more civil and actually, more amiable he became… and the longer they were around each other, it was obvious that that emotion they were holding back was love…

But, Rory, I swear I had never seen such disgust on their faces, as they spat that terrible phrase back and forth at each other… so I decided to leave and return later… Much later, just to be safe… and when I did, I found Sarah asleep in bed, Jareth nowhere to be found, so I figured as much he had gone to talk to you… So I set myself to straighten their room as I normally do, being careful not to wake Sarah, who seemed quite content sleeping… But… It began to seem like I was intruding on their privacy…" Sagira stopped, obviously uncomfortable and unsure if she should continue.

"Why? Why did you feel like you were intruding on their privacy? And what do you mean by privacy?" Rory asked.

Sagira didn't answer, but Rory noticed a blush appear on her cheeks.

"Ooohhhhhh…. _That_ kind of privacy…" Rory said, making Sagira blush further, then added, "….Sagira, I'm almost 16, you'd be surprised at the kind of stuff I already know, so you'll have a hard time shocking me…. Go on, go on…"

Sagira seemed taken aback by Rory's declaration, and hesitated, but continued, "Well… It seemed like I was intruding on their privacy because… well… there were clothes everywhere… Shirts, pants, shoes… and, uh… Sarah's _robe_…" Sagira said, not wanting to have to go into detail…

"Gotcha, gotcha… but, I thought they were fighting, why would they…" She paused, seeing how uncomfortable Sagira was talking about Sarah and Jareth in such a state, and said, "…uh, leave clothes around… um, if they were fighting and using the word 'hate'?"

"That's what I was wondering, but soon, Sarah began to stir, so I hurried myself to take Jareth's clothes and add them to his laundry, and I placed out new clothes for him, and clothes for Sarah as well… As I took his laundry and was rounding the corner, I heard Jareth appear and enter the room, so I left to do his laundry… Next when I come around to see you after I'd finished, you began grilling me with questions of why Sarah hadn't come to see you… I mean, you seemed unsatisfied when I told you Sarah was sleeping, but you haven't told me why…"

Rory sighed and sat down in the nearest chair. "I was 'unsatisfied' because that's all Jareth was really able to tell me… right before we got into a big fight…"

"A fight, what about?" Sagira asked, taking a seat close by Rory.

Rory began fiddling with her hair as she recounted the experience to Sagira. "I mean, I guess I cut him off while he was apologizing, but I was pretty pissed! I mean, I'd been left alone all day, Sagira, with not a word from Sarah. Suddenly Jareth shows up and tells me she's been sleeping?!?! All day?!? While I've been sitting here waiting for some explanation of why Jareth was suddenly blaming me for his and Sarah's problems and whatever the hell is going on between them, she's been sleeping… I mean, I really had wrongfully unleashed my frustration on Jareth, but hey! So had he earlier that morning, so now we're even! But I got upset and after he left, I had my crying jag, and just was so fed up and tired, that I went to sleep… And I wake up this morning, hoping for at least a mini Post-It note from Sarah, and I've got nada, zippo, zilch…"

"Well… I've finished my duties for the moment… maybe I'll take you on a tour outside, and maybe we'll bump into Sarah there… I know how she loves to go near the gardens in the mid-morning…" Sagira offered.

Rory heaved a great sigh of relief and said gratefully, "I'd love to get out of here… I'm going out of my mind indoors so maybe I can get back in my mind outdoors!"

The two got up to leave, and when they walked outside, they chatted about little things: their favorite things to do, their favorite types of music… Rory was surprised at how many new contemporary artists and bands Sagira knew and actually liked.

"Sarah hasn't cut herself off completely from the Aboveground; she brings music, and I think you call them 'mooo-vies'? Well she brings them back, and Jareth enjoys the music, because he is quite a proficient singer himself…" Sagira said.

Rory stopped because she'd begun laughing so hard. "Jareth?! The Goblin King… a singer?! You must be joking!"

Sagira stared at Rory and said, "Not at all… His Majesty prides himself on his music and singing…" she paused once more and leaned closer to Rory and said with her voice lowered, "…the other servants tell me it was one of the ways that he lured your aunt around the Labyrinth… some said he also… um, seduced her with it…"

Rory stood shocked at what Sagira was telling her. "Wow… just, wow… I guess Sarah will have to clarify that for me a bit when I see her… _if_ I see her…"

Sagira's face looked startled and said quickly, "But you never heard that from me… Do you promise not to tell her that I told you?"

"Only if you promise not to tell her what _I_ told _you_ about the fight Jareth and I had… I want to tell her…" Rory said.

Sagira smiled and said, "Agreed…"

Sagira and Rory continued their walk, they came to the garden. Rory smiled, and closed her eyes, breathing in the fragrance of the sweet flowers. Some she'd recognized, but others looked imaginative, almost whimsical. Suddenly Rory heard a twinkling tune being hummed, and she opened her eyes and further ventured into the garden, with Sagira following. Suddenly, Rory saw Sarah kneeling amongst the flowers, humming to herself, and pruning some flowers and collecting some.

"Sarah!!!" Rory exclaimed, before her brain could stop her mouth. Sarah looked up, surprised to see Rory.

"Rory?! Oh, I'm sorry… I decided to pick some of these flowers for you to apologize for leaving you alone for so long, but then I noticed some of these needed pruning, and if you prune them, they grow larger, and they're looking a bit scant, so I found my pruning sheers and I…" Sarah continued to babble.

Rory's previous frustration and anger faded as she watched her aunt babble like a child that had been caught with her hand in the cookie jar, and just sighed and laughed and said, "It's alright… thank you, that's very nice of you to pick me flowers… my… my dad used to do that for me… I mean, not pick them, but pick them _out_ for me… he never really had a green thumb…"

Sarah smiled, and got up, dusting the soil off her hands and layered cotton sundress. She picked up the small bouquet she'd been collecting and handed them to Rory.

"Well here… and I'm really very sorry for leaving you alone so long with nothing to do… Really it's not as bad here as you may think, it's just that I… well, I got kind of caught up, but that doesn't excuse me from not getting back to you…"

Rory just smiled as she held the flowers close to her face and took in their aromatic scent, and murmured, "Their lovely… thank you…"

Sagira cleared her throat and suddenly said, "Well, here, Rory, let me take those for you, and I'll trim the ends and put them in a vase with fresh water and I'll put them in your room for you and I'll give you two a chance to catch up…"

"Thanks, Sagira…" Rory said, giving her a warm, grateful smile. Sagira just smiled back and took the flowers and left the two alone in the garden.

"So… seems we have some catching up to do…" Sarah said.

"Yes, we most certainly do…" Rory said, with relief and determination in her voice.

Sarah smiled and extended her hand to Rory and said, "Well come… let me take you to my favorite spot… well, my _second_ favorite spot…" and she took Rory's hand and led her through the garden. They walked for a while, until they came to the edge of the garden, leading to a little river that was fed by a small waterfall. It was all set by an immense tree that had thick, strong branches, but long, wispy branches like a willow also. In almost an idyllic way, the strong branches held two simple swings make from a plank of wood and rope. The whole scene was breathtakingly picturesque, and Rory found herself gaping.

"Oh…my… Sarah! This is… this is gorgeous!" Rory gasped.

"Isn't it? The Labyrinth has so many natural wonders; you just need to know the right places to look!" Sarah said, grinning, hoping onto one of the swings.

Rory joined her and they both began swinging lazily back and forth. Sarah looked almost angelic, glowing with her cotton sundress rippling around her gracefully. Rory smiled, feeling just so unconditionally happy, and unable to remember the last time she'd felt that way.

"So…" Sarah began again, "I think that I'd better start from the beginning… Jareth once said to me, '_Though we're strangers 'til now / We're choosing the path between the stars_…' and I think that even though _we_" she gestured between the two of them, "are strangers, we'll choose our path and learn about each other, and we'll have a better understanding of each other… and _others…_"

Rory nodded, especially understanding who Sarah'd meant by 'other'… a particularly blonde 'other', and said, "I agree… the beginning…"

"Right… so I'm sure you want some gaps to be filled in… Lucky for me, you investigated enough for you to have a basic timeline of events… I don't know if your father or grandmother ever told you but… really, your father and I weren't siblings… we were _half-siblings_… my mother was an actress and left me and your grandfather to pursue her career and he married Karen and they had your dad when I was in high school… to be honest, it was pretty tough on me, being that age with a baby brother soaking up all the attention… I was pretty selfish, and self-absorbed, and I had many obsessions, but one was with my mom and theater, so I was often in my own world… but Karen often forced me to stay home and baby-sit your dad when I would've much rather been doing things I wanted to do, which was most of the time playing dress up and reciting lines from plays and, what else but one of my favorite books, _The Labyrinth_…

"So one night, I was especially irritated that Karen had the nerve to say that she and my dad went out 'very rarely' when they so annoyingly went out _every single weekend!_ And your dad kept crying, but he'd taken my favorite teddy bear Lancelot, and I was so selfish, I just remembered the story from _The Labyrinth_ so I recited the story of how the Goblin King was in love with a girl and gave her power over some of his subjects, some goblins, and how if the right words were said, the goblins would take the baby to the Goblin City and it would be turned into a goblin… Have you heard the story?"

"Yeah… Dad used to tell it to me all the time… He said that the girl wished the baby away, but when the Goblin King appeared and gave her the luckless chance to retrieve the baby if she solved the Labyrinth and reached the castle in thirteen hours, she could have the baby back unharmed, Goblin-free… but it's just a fairytale… isn't it?"

Sarah just grinned as she said, "Not quite… you see… I sort of wished your father away…" Rory just stared at Sarah.

"But you see, Jareth appeared and like you said, gave me thirteen hours to get Toby back, and I realized that I hadn't meant to wish him away, that I'd just said them in a moment of frustration, and that I just _had_ to get him back… So that's what I did… and well…. I met some problems along the way, but I also made some friends, and they helped me reach the castle… How much else of the story do you know?"

"Uhhh, that you got the baby… I mean, Dad, back and you both lived happily ever after… and that's about it… right?" Rory said.

"Well, not quite… See, while I was on my journey through the Labyrinth, the majority of the problems were sabotages staged by Jareth… the cleaners, the Bog of Eternal Stench, a drugged peach, a hazed fantasy, and the Escher room… and even through the sabotage, something else was forming underneath it all… it was rather unsaid, but definitely felt mutually… a bond was forming between Jareth and I… I definitely became aware of that during the drugged-peach induced fantasy, but… I mean, I was only a little older than you, Rory! I hadn't even graduated high school yet! I couldn't understand the significance of that bond then… and… while I chased your father in the Escher room, I took a leap for him and ended up being face to face with Jareth… and he offered me everything… my dreams, my desires, everything, in exchange for my fear, my love, and my submission… but like I said, I didn't understand my feelings then, and all I could think of was getting Toby safely home, so I denied him, and in doing so, conquered the Labyrinth…

"When we returned, I decided to stop clinging to my childhood, I gave Lancelot to your father, I put my toys away, and I decided to take care of your dad, because through my journey, I realized how much I cared for that little cutie… I swear you look just like him…"

Rory laughed and said, "Yeah, people always said that, but they also said…" and both Sarah and Rory said at the same time, "'but you've got your mother's hair!' " and they both laughed, and Sarah added, "I read Karen's birthday card…she was always rather superficial that way… she always complained I never 'had dates at my age…'"

Rory laughed, but said, "So… there's got to be more… how come you dropped off the face of the earth after Julliard?"

Sarah sighed and continued, "Well see, Julliard hadn't gone as well as I'd hoped… I didn't really fit in, and then your grandfather died, so I came home to take care of your dad and help him cope with the grief, and then I dropped out of Julliard and came back, but like always, Karen and I always butted heads, until Toby started acting out until finally one day he gave Karen the ultimatum: him or me…" Sarah sighed as she choked back the emotion that was getting caught in her throat. "You can't know how much that hurt me, Rory, because I loved your father so much, and he was suddenly turning his back on me…"

Rory thought of how she felt when she realized her dad, whom she'd trusted and confided in the most, was hiding secrets from her, and said, "I actually might know how much it hurt… but… go on…"

"So the night Karen told me to leave, I thought of Jareth's offer, and… I wished myself away…"

"Wait…. Just like I did??" Rory said, surprised.

"Yep… and just like that, I accepted Jareth's offer of my dreams and I did get my dreams… I always dreamed up endless happiness and fulfillment, and…" Sarah smiled as she said, "I got it… Jareth and I got to know each other and I started to sort through the emotions I'd always had for him and…" she held her hand out for Rory to see the ring on her finger, "…well…"

"Oh, I'd noticed that!" Rory said, slowing the swing and taking Sarah's hand and studying the ring. "That's amazing… I've never seen anything like it… it's not zirconium… what is it?"

"Oh, it's crystal… It's one of Jareth's trademarks…" Sarah said smirking, thinking of Jareth's amazing crystal tricks.

"Wow… so you guys got married… then… what?"

Sarah became quiet as she studied the ring and said, "Well Jareth actually proposed after the…" Sarah sighed, "…infection…"

Rory's brow furrowed, "the 'infection'? What infection?"

Sarah sighed again, and said, "Unbeknownst to me, after eating a particular cheese, I became infected with Listeriosis… a kind of bacteria, and it was left untreated for so long, it developed into Meningitis… which normally isn't hard to deal with, but mine had gone on for so long, it had become lethal… I became terribly ill… Jareth was by my side the entire time, through the chills, the vomit, and the epileptic fits… I'd have seizures and my eyesight started to go…but while I suffered, he suffered, and while he suffered, the kingdom suffered… I slipped into a coma, and just before I did, I was able to tell him that I loved him…

"Jareth didn't have to worry about me dying; because in accepting my dreams, I accepted immortality to live in the Underground for eternity… he just had to worry if I would come out of the coma, which was very hard on him… But thankfully I came out of it, and that's when he proposed, because he was afraid of losing me again…"

Rory quickly wiped the tears out of her eyes before they could escape down her cheeks and said, "Wow… well I guess that makes sense then…"

Sarah stopped and cocked her head, confused and said, "What do you mean?"

"Well…" Rory cleared her throat, "…it makes sense of why he's so protective of you, why my 'creating a big space between you guys' scares him because he's afraid of losing you…"

"Yes… I was hoping you'd understand that… Rory, it really isn't all because of that… Jareth is just naturally a very guarded person, who likes to keep up a semblance and reputation, and… he just really doesn't know you or understand you as well as I do… It was a mix of his fear of losing me, his personality, and… well, jealousy that's caused him to act this way to you…"

"Jealous? Of what?" Rory said, truly confused and baffled.

"Well… while I traveled through the Labyrinth, you know how I told you that he sabotaged me? Well… He was falling in love with me, and was frustrated that instead of 'loving him back' so to say, I was devotedly searching for Toby… It's a jealousy that was bred towards your father and has, unfortunately, been extended to you…"

"How come?" Rory asked.

"Well… he recognized the same adoration and devotion I had towards Toby that… well, I for you…"

"…Really? Do you really mean that?" Rory said, she cursed herself for letting her voice tremble and tears gather in her eyes.

"Of course I do… Rory… You remember when you said that 'we didn't have some strange bond' when we first met?" Rory nodded and Sarah continued.

"Well you were wrong… I've been having dreams about you for months… and we _have_ had this unacknowledged bond forming between us, and ever since I saw you in your bedroom at your foster parents' house…" Sarah stopped to hold her tears that were gathering at bay, "…you've reminded me of your father, and I've loved you since the moment I saw you…"

Rory didn't care this time that the tears were spilling down her face, and she sniffled, and simply took Sarah's hand as they sat on the swings. Sarah was so moved by the simple gesture, and squeezed Rory's hand as her own tears rolled down her face.

"I love you, Rory… And your father and mother did too… they wanted me to make sure that you knew that…"

"W-what? 'They wanted you to make sure'… how?"

Sarah sniffled as more emotion began to choke up her throat and said shakily, "Well… They asked me to make sure you knew that because… I was with them when they died…"

Rory stared at Sarah, fresh tears forming in her eyes, as she tremblingly said, "W-w-what…"

"I… I'd be dreaming of the three of you fighting and… well I told Jareth I had to find the three of you… but… but I didn't know it was Toby… or you… or your mom… I hadn't seen Toby since he was twelve years old! I had no idea he was married… or had you… I really didn't mean to write you all out of my life, it's just….I was so hurt, when your father did that to me… I just preferred to forget all my pain and sorrow and start anew… But then I started having dreams of the three of you, but I had no idea who you were, but when I saw the car accident, I woke up and begged Jareth to help me find you guys…

"Jareth had doctors psychoanalyze me to try to figure out why I had made up three people, but I hadn't made you up, but they didn't realize that, and that's what Jareth means when he says 'an uncomfortable space' because Jareth was trying to help, but he was treating me, quite frankly, like a loony! But when we got to the hospital…" Sarah began to cry, "…and they said your mom and dad's names, and I saw the state they were in…" Sarah couldn't stop her tears enough to continue and Rory got off her swing and hugged her.

As Rory rubbed her back (remembering how much it soothed her when her mom did it to her) and shared in Sarah's tears, Sarah continued, "…He wasn't supposed to be able to hear or see me, but Toby sensed me and told me… told me to take you… and to love you… and to tell you… how… how much he and Delilah love you…"

"…I miss them… so much… I thought it was all a bad dream, but I couldn't wake up…" Rory cried.

"I know… I know exactly how you feel… But your parents wanted you to be happy…" Sarah said, gathering herself and wiping away her tears and Rory's too. "You've got to remember how much they loved you and how much you loved them, and know that everything's going to be okay…"

"Is it?" Rory asked, gazing at Sarah. "I haven't really hit it off too well with Jareth… and what about Aboveground… I don't know if I can stay Underground for eternity Sarah…"

"No… no, you don't have to stay here for eternity, Rory… it wasn't your dream for eternity in the Underground…" Sarah said.

"And yours was?" Rory said.

Sarah smiled and said, "My dream was to live forever in the place I've been the happiest… and that was here… but your dream… no, your dream was to be with family… family that loved and cared about you… and you are… you're in that dream, Rory, but you can choose to end a dream whenever you want…"

"But how will I know when I want this dream to end? But what if I don't want it _to_ end?"

Sarah placed her hand under Rory's chin and said, "Some dreams don't have to end, Rory… Sometimes they just get put on a shelf for a while until you bring them back and bring them to life again…" she regarded Rory for a moment, then said, "I believe that you should finish your work to finish high school here, and they you should return Aboveground to decide if where you want to continue your life, whether it be here, or Aboveground… and," Sarah said with a warm smile, "whatever decision you make… I don't think it's too much to say that you'd have the occasional visit to your loving aunt and eccentric uncle…"

Rory smiled and hugged Sarah close again, "I love you, Sarah…"

Sarah closed her eyes to the tears and stroked Rory's wild red tresses, murmuring, "I love you too, Rory…"

The aunt and niece continued the rest of the morning out on the swings, bringing their breakfast outside with them, and spent the whole morning telling stories and laughing, and enjoying the well-needed company of long lost family.

Author's Note: Okay, so there was the emotional purging session… next comes the emotional purging session with Jareth… I'm playing over different scenarios in my head of how the purging session should go, but once I've got a basic idea, I'll get it down, and I'll be getting the next chapter out ASAP…

BTW: I may start overlapping the titles of chapters from _The Way Forward_, because I realized one of it's chapters was titled "_Though We're Strangers Til Now, We're Choosing the Path Between the Stars…_" and since "_Though We're Strangers Til Now_" is kinda the title of the story, I figured it wouldn't be a biggie, but I figured I'd mention it…


	10. Ch10: The Lost and the Lonely

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: So here goes trying to get Rory and Jareth to talk without fighting…Yeah, this is gonna be hard, and I'm the author! I get to do whatever I want with the characters, and even _**I**_ have trouble trying to get literary characters to stop fighting…

Remember: If there are any flashbacks, they are written like _**this… bold and italicized…**_

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Ten: _The Lost and the Lonely…_

The jealousy was creeping back slowly, and Jareth was losing the battle of keeping it at bay. He knew he shouldn't be jealous of his niece because even while their relationship hadn't had the best start, Jareth knew that deep down that Rory was a good kid; that and she was also important to Sarah; and should be to him as well.

But as Sarah had (rather suggestively) expressed before that they had gone so long without each other's company, to being together every moment, then back to spending time apart again. Jareth hated it; but he knew it was necessary in determining what was to be done with Rory.

He knew very well that Rory, with her rebellious and willful personality, would not want to stay in the Underground eternally. The conflict came to her relationship with Sarah. He knew that Sarah would not overlook Rory knowing full and well of Toby and Rory wanting her to be with family. Another conflict was Rory's ability to return to the Aboveground easily and or freely after disappearing from her foster family's custody.

Jareth was sitting in the throne room alone, one leg lazily dangling over an arm of the throne. He took the hand that had been massaging his temples while he thought and conjured up a crystal and began spinning and twirling it back and forth over his hand. He let out a relaxed sigh as he put his thoughts of Rory on hold and just focused on the power and expertise he felt juggling the crystal.

Just as Jareth began to do elaborate tricks with the crystal, Rory and Sarah walked in giggling. Rory was saying something to Sarah, but stopped and watched Jareth.

"Wow…. That's pretty cool!" she turned to Sarah, "…..is that the twirling you talked about when you came to my foster room, Sarah?"

"Yes!" Sarah said excitedly, put then pouted, "…I wish that I would do that… I practice and practice, but…. the student has definitely not surpassed the teacher…yet…" Sarah added with an impish grin.

Jareth smirked at Sarah's playful comment, but then said, getting up, "So… what can I do for you girls?"

Rory and Sarah looked at each other, as if exchanging telepathic messages, and then Sarah said, "Well, I have some things I need to take care of, so I'll leave you two alone to straighten things out… No fighting you two!" Rory and Jareth both sighed as if being scolded by their mother.

Sarah smirked and walked out. Rory and Jareth kind of stood there in awkward silence until Jareth cleared his throat. Rory began to rock back and forth on her heels, and Jareth cleared his throat again.

"Well… um, would you care to sit down and talk?" Jareth said, gesturing to a comfy looking chair that had magically appeared next to the throne.

"Whoa… okay…" Rory said as she sat down, "…that was pretty cool… what other kind of magic stuff are you able to do…"

"Many different things…" Jareth said cryptically, as he sat down but didn't elaborate more.

"Uh huh…. Well excuse me for trying to make small talk…" Rory said, which was meant to be to herself, but was a little louder than she'd meant.

"So is this the part when we start fighting dramatically again, which causes yet another endless conflict in this tragic story?" Jareth said, the sarcasm searing holes into his cynical phrase.

Rory started to retort something back, but had a flashback to what Sarah had told her in the garden: _**Jareth is just naturally a very guarded person, who likes to keep up a semblance and reputation…**_

There had been another awkward silence while Rory flashbacked and it was broken when she simply went, "No…"

"What do you mean, 'No'?" Jareth said.

"I mean, 'No, this isn't the part when we start fighting dramatically again, which causes a fight and stuff' yada yada yada…. I mean, that's great and all but… hey, we can rewrite the script can't we?" she said satirically.

Jareth chuckled and said, "Well I'm usually partial to being eccentric and unscripted myself…" he smirked a toothy grin and added, "…adds to the character, don't you think?"

Rory just laughed and said, "Sure, let's go with that…"

Jareth laughed too, surprised at how wry Rory's sense of humor was… rather wry like his…

"So… I think that the whole occurrence we refer to as 'the debacle' should be erased from the slate… where did I hear the phrase, 'If your slate is clean, then you can throw stones..."? Well, I for one know my slate isn't clean, and I have to admit, throwing stones in general is fun, but throwing them at you just gives me a whole other kind of fulfillment… So I think that we should purge ourselves of guilt and feelings, then we can resume digging into each other…" Rory said sarcastically and diplomatically.

Jareth just sat with his hand on his chin regarding Rory all through her speech and when she was through, he said, "You know, you're like some sort of twisted psychiatrist with all your devious, but wise advice and suggestions…"

"Now, now… clean slate, then stones… remember?" Rory chided, "Now…I think that I'll begin the purging session…" Rory cleared her throat and straightened up in her seat for effect.

"I'm sorry for acting like a brat yesterday morning… No matter how I felt you acted towards me, I shouldn't have been so nasty… I really am not the kind of person that takes to people talking to her… Especially people who corner me and pin problems on me… I understand it may have just been your nature to poke fun at me… But I really don't like that… I mean, I usually don't mind, but I had no idea who you were… I had to figure that out on my own…"

Jareth brow furrowed as Rory began to talk of his personality and interjected, "What do you mean 'no matter how I felt you acted towards me"? What qualms did you have about me greeting you in the morning?"

Rory stared at Jareth with disbelief, "Acting condescending with a patronizing tone of voice wasn't exactly the best wake up call…"

Jareth opened his mouth to say something, but then recalled the smug feeling he got feeling empowered with knowing that he had more knowledge of the situation than Rory did, but stopped, then said, "Go on…"

"Yes, well… I know I'm not royalty or anything, but I _am_ family… I'm your niece, and I think I deserve a little respect just for that… which means you do deserve a little respect as well, being my uncle…" Rory continued.

Jareth nodded, "I understand your point… And you are right about the 'pinning problems on you' part… It wasn't fair of me at all to blindside you out of nowhere… Even if I had a problem with you, Rory, I should've come to you fairly and diplomatically about it, not directing it at you in a fight as a missile…"

"Wait, 'if'? 'If you had a problem with me'? Meaning, presently you _don't_ have a problem with me?" Rory said in shock, her eyebrows raised.

"Well… not the "I-blame-you-for-bringing-Sarah-and-I-apart" problem…" he smirked, thinking of them making up for lost time not too long ago, "…at least not anymore…"

"Really? But that was some pretty heavy stuff you laid on me there…" Rory said, "…at least pretty heavy for me not even being here a full day!"

"Yes, well I suppose I do owe you an apology about the actual problem… because even though the problem had focused on you for quite a while, the effects of the problem itself were not your fault… they were mine… I chose not to listen to Sarah and I treated her like a basketcase… And I've had a long discussion with her, and explained myself, so it is rather good that I'm 'cleaning my slate' with you now, so that's off my list of things to do…"

"Oh, so you have a 'to-do List' have you?" Rory joked.

"Yes, a rather long one… including rather impossible tasks, such as training the goblins to have manners and to make the Bog of Eternal Stench lighten up…" he added, jesting.

Rory laughed, having heard about such things in the stories her father told and from the book The Labyrinth, but slowly became serious as she said, "What about me? Am I not considered a 'rather impossible task' on that to-do list?"

Jareth's eyes softened as he reached over and patted Rory's hand lightly as he said, "Certainly not…. A challenge, maybe, but in no way will you be impossible to me, Rory…"

The corner's of Rory's lips twitched, wanting to smile, but it was just…WEIRD! All she and Jareth had done was fight… It was just awkward to smile to him… Laughing was one thing, but Jareth's heartfelt words were worthy of a sincere smile, and Rory felt herself letting go and smiling fully at Jareth…

Jareth let a smile creep onto his own face as he watched is niece register the amiable compliment that was just directed at her. _She is very pretty, _Jareth thought, _She has much of her mother in her, but she is almost a living ghost of Toby…And she is very much like Sarah… she must get that through Toby from the Williams family…_

Rory cleared her throat and started, "Well since you are atoning for laying it on me, I'll atone for laying it on you…"

Jareth cocked his head ever so slightly, questioning what Rory meant.

"You see…When you came to really apologize last night, I was really irritated… I'd been bored out of my MIND yesterday without SOMEBODY coming to even speak a word to me! After breakfast, Sarah had left me in my room all alone, all nervous and anxious about her going to talk to you about our fight that morning, but… she and I talked, and she apologized for getting caught up momentarily… Never got into much detail _why _she was caught up…" Jareth grinned, and Rory didn't notice and continued, "…but whatever… I don't care…It doesn't matter now… And…" Rory sighed, "It's been really hard…"

Jareth regarded Rory with understanding eyes and with the hand that was still on top of hers from patting it, began to caringly rub his thumb back and forth on her hand, "I know… You haven't had the best time after… Well…"

Rory let out a shuddering sigh, keeping her emotions in check, and said, "They were just gone…" she snapped her fingers, "…just like that… I mean… I never even got to say good-bye… And…" she felt the tears welling up and she held them back, "…the last things I said to them were mean and selfish… The very last things I said to them… and then… then they were dead…" Rory couldn't keep her body from shaking as a sob began to rack her body as she began to remember the night of the accident.

Jareth all but melted as he saw the emotion choking Rory and, not caring that they had had some issues before, rose slightly from his seat and took Rory in his arms, crooning, "Come here… come here…"

Rory, not caring either, wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck and sobbed into his shoulder, sobbing, "They're dead… they're gone… they're gone…"

Jareth stroked Rory's hair shushing her and said, "And you know what?"

Rory just continued to sob so Jareth said, "They're gone… but they knew you loved them… the three of you were a team, a pack, you were a close threesome… You were all you had and not even a fight with a teenager could've swayed their knowledge of your love…"

Rory's sobbing had begun to lessen, but she kept her head buried in Jareth's shoulder. Jareth cleared his throat, knowing he had to let Rory know he identified with her grief-stricken state...

"And… well, I know the feeling, Rory… of… of grief… of loneliness… of regret… regretting not doing things you wish you could've done…" he choked up himself when he thought of him and Sarah just being able to admit their love for each other before she slipped into the coma.

"And… you just beat yourself up for not doing and saying the things you wanted to, because you know you'll never be able to do or say them, and you wanted nothing more for them to be done… or said… That you wasted your chance…"

Rory brought her head up and looked into Jareth's tear-filled eyes with her puffy ones and said, "The coma…"

Jareth was the one that let out the shuddering sob this time as he remembered, "Yes…I… I… I thought I'd lost her… I didn't know what to do with myself… I knew I wouldn't _lose_ Sarah the way you lost your parents, but… the thought of never seeing her radiant smile… or hearing her melodic laugh again… or… or seeing her looking at me with love shining in her eyes again…"

Rory watched Jareth recount the story, and she watched the emotions swarm across his face: the horror, the grief, the anguish, the heartache, and the fear… and the most evident of all, the love. The unconditional, devoted, absolute, obvious…..butt-kicking love that was pouring from his words of Sarah and was glowing on his face as he spoke of Sarah. It was… it was the same love she saw when she looked at her parents.

Without a word, Rory wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck again and gave him a warm, sincere hug. Jareth wrapped his arms around her and let a few of his tears fall into her fiery hair.

"You're so strong, Rory… So so strong…" Jareth said.

"Really?" Rory murmured, not moving from her position hugging Jareth, "why?"

"I was lucky… I didn't completely lose Sarah, thankfully… I don't know what I would've done if I had… I wouldn't have handled losing her with the maturity, grace, or dignity you have… I probably wouldn't have been able to live…"

"That's how I felt when I was in foster care… because I was in someone's custody, but I was alone… I had no one… I contemplated suicide, and I'm so grateful that I didn't… because I'm not alone… I have Sarah…" the sincere smile crept onto her face again as she added, "…and you, now… Coming here made me realize that….It's like they say, 'When God closes a door, another one opens'," she laughed and said, "and what a door _this_ was to open!"

Jareth laughed warmly and said, "Yes, the Underground definitely throws you for a loop… just be lucky you didn't have to run the Labyrinth… You really wouldn't have liked physical and psychological exhaustion adding to emotional exhaustion…"

Rory giggled and said, "You're probably right… but that's not to say I couldn't do it if I wanted to…"

"Oh of course not!" Jareth said mockingly.

Rory just laughed and hugged Jareth again. Jareth's eyes slipped closed as he hugged Rory again and the two sat there and held each other, actually bonding after the first real non-hostile conversation they'd had.

Sarah peered in her crystal from her bedroom and watched the scene of events take place and smiled to herself as she watched her husband and niece embrace each other.

"I knew they could work it out…" Sarah said to herself, "…They have so much in common… well they love me for one…" She laughed as she made the crystal vanish and continued to work in the garden.

"So… do we really have to 'fight' or can we just 'maliciously verbally attack' each other from now on?" Rory asked Jareth.

Jareth laughed and said, "Well I can't speak for what may happen in the future, but a good jab at one another should be sufficient…"

"I agree… Come on, let's go find Sarah and tell her how we're," Rory said with a cutesy fickleness, "bestest buddies now…" pulling Jareth up and leading him out of the Throne Room.

Jareth chuckled and said, "Wow…after not even two days Underground and you know the place like the back of your hand…"

"Well… Sarah showed me around… plus… a certain uncle of mine could _possibly_ poof us where ever she is…" Rory said with an impish grin.

"That, or the 'certain uncle of yours' could possible poof himself away and make you walk all by yourself…" Jareth said just as mischievously.

"Uh huh… wait, what?!?!" Rory exclaimed.

And just like that, Jareth poofed away just as plainly as he had been standing there.

"Jareth?! Jareth?! Hey! Don't leave me!!" Rory called out, spinning around in a futile attempt to find him. She suddenly heard a familiar, throaty and rather smug chuckle omnipresent and everywhere.

"Oh, that's great… real great, Jareth… You just wait until I get lost a band of goblins suddenly turns on me… It's always funny until someone gets hurt…" Rory said, a hint of agitation and sarcasm in her voice.

"You're right… because then it would evolved from funny to hilarious…" said Jareth's omnipresent voice.

"Oh you just wait, I'm telling on youuuuu…" Rory said in a mockingly childish voice, "I'm telling Sarah that you're picking on me again…" she said tauntingly.

"Oh, that's right, you big Tattle-Tale! You run off to Sarah and cry about how," he made his voice as equally mockingly childish, "Big-Bad Jareth was teasing you again…"

"That's right I will… and then she'll put you in a time out!" Rory said as she took off running to the gardens, knowing Sarah would end up there even if she weren't there right then.

"Wait, Rory! I was just kidding!" the omnipresent Jareth voice said again.

"Not now, the big Tattle-Tale is about to go tell on the Big Bad Jareth to Sarah…" Rory called over her shoulder as she kept running.

"Rory! RORY! LORELAI TARYN WILLIAMS!!!" the omnipresent Jareth voice called. Rory just laughed and kept running.

Jareth's omnipresent voice sighed and said, "I'm gonna have to give this uncle stuff some getting used to…"

Author's Note: Okay, so, got all that out… and I can't wait to start writing the new chapter, but I'm on vacation for the next two weeks, so I'll be obsessively writing into the night the next chapter because I'm really excited about the upcoming chapters, and I'll have it posted in roughly two weeks when I get back…

Oh, and 10 extra credit points if someone can figure out where the quote "If your slate is clean, then you can throw stones…" came from.

1 hint: musical

:D I'm interested to see if anyone can figure it out…


	11. Ch11: So Much Trouble

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: So after a nice long vacation, I've had a chance to mull over my own ideas and form my own little think tank of ideas of where I'm going to be taking the story, and I think that you guys are going to really love this new chapter… Half to most of you will probably figure it out before I say it outright…

Oh, 10 points and congratulations to **lounging-pixie** for answering my quiz question:

Q: "10 extra credit points if someone can figure out where the quote "If your slate is clean, then you can throw stones…" came from.

1 hint: musical"

A: _Jesus Christ Superstar_

Oh, and I'm going to put the _**M-rated material**_ disclaimer up… -grins mischievously-

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Eleven: _So Much Trouble Over Such a Little Thing…_

A few months had gone by and Sarah couldn't believe how well things were going. There was obviously this kind of head butting between Jareth and Rory, but Sarah knew it was just a clash of their personalities. After all, she and Jareth had been the very same way until they learned to compromise… And that was only after they agreed not to be at each other's throats; Sarah was pleased to know that Jareth and Rory had done the same.

Then as more time went by, it became increasingly obvious there was much work for Jareth to do out in the Labyrinth; which left Rory and Sarah alone together most of the time. Rory loved having a female figure in her life again, and slowly the defensive rebellious wall started to crumble and Rory was continually cheery and took pleasure in living again.

But suddenly, Rory started seeing changes in Sarah. When they went on picnics and sat in the garden, the amount of food they brought started to get greater and greater and so did Sarah's portions.

"Sarah?" Rory asked, trying to sound nonchalant in an attempt to bring up the topic gently.

"Mmhmm??" Sarah said, while chewing a whole cupcake she had managed to fit into her mouth.

"Um… well, you seem really hungry lately… like, for a while, you've been more hungry than usual…" Rory said.

Sarah murmured, and took a gulp of her juice and said, "Oh, I know… crazy isn't it? I mean, I'd probably better watch how much I eat or I may change into an elephant, right?"

"Well, I probably would've tried to state that in a nicer way so I wouldn't hurt your feelings, but yeah…. That's basically the gist of what I would've said…" Rory said bluntly.

Sarah laughed and added, "Don't worry, Rory… It always seems like I go through these periods of nonstop eating… It's usually brought on by stress… Like when I first got to Julliard, my roommate kept complaining that she wished that 'she had my figure when I ate like I did'…"

"But, what kind of stress could you possibly be going through right now that would make you want to engorge at this enormity?" Rory inquired.

"Hmm?" Sarah mumbled, probing through the fruit basket and then finally selecting a rather large apple, took a bite and said, "Oh, I don't know… maybe I just miss Jareth…"

"But…. you totally see him, like, every night… He has dinner with us, he's with you after dinner, and then he leaves in the morning to go to the Labyrinth…" Rory said plainly, trying to reason through Sarah's appetite.

"No, no, not every night… He tries to be home every night, and even if he's home for dinner, he hasn't always been able to stay with me for long if he has to go tend to something else in the Labyrinth…"

"Well… whatever… Just keep in mind the whole elephant comment, Sarah…" Rory said, reaching for a raspberry.

All Sarah did in response was chew thoughtfully on her apple as she lifted an eyebrow to Rory, and Rory defended herself, "What?! You said it, not me…"

Sarah just took a glob of frosting from a cupcake with her index finger and wiped it on Rory's nose, to which Rory took a glob with two fingers and smeared on Sarah's cheek. The whole frosting duel eventually turned into a full on food fight until Sagira came outside with the most shocked look on her face.

"Well… I'm not even really sure I want to know what possessed you two to start a food fight…" Sagira said with her hands on her hips, in a mocking parental voice. All Sarah and Rory did was look at each other, then both picked up handfuls of food and begin lobbing them at Sagira.

"AAHHH!!!" Sagira cried as she held her hands up defensively to her face as she became covered with food just as Sarah and Rory were. Soon all three were consumed in a spirited food fight.

XXX

Two or three weeks went by, and soon Sarah began showing evidence of her previous food consumption.

"What did I tell you? Hmmm? But did you listen to me?" Rory said at dinner, with self-satisfaction in being right and criticism.

"Spare me, okay? It's bad enough I can't fit into half of my favorite clothes and I have to get most of them mended…" Sarah pouted as she pushed her downsized portions around her plate, her chin on her hand.

"You know, I think we should we should have Dr. Gryphön visit you, Sarah…" Jareth said, drinking from his goblet.

"What? Why? I'm not sick!" Sarah said incredulously.

"Well, I know that changes in diet can lead to many things…" Jareth said.

"Yeah, I dunno if you might get diabetes or something like that… you did scarf down a lot of cupcakes, Sarah…" Rory added to Jareth's argument.

Sarah just grumbled as she continued to push her food around her plate, at a much faster, angrier rate. Jareth reached across the table and took Sarah's hand, waiting for her to look him in the eyes.

"Sarah, just do it for me… please? You can just see Gryphön tomorrow after you and Rory have had sometime by yourselves… but I'd like for you two to at least have seen him by lunch…"

Sarah just sighed as she gazed at the concern in Jareth's eyes, masked by his light-hearted tone.

"Alright, alright alright… Just a checkup, just to prove to you guys that I'm alright…" Sarah said.

"Thank you…" Jareth said with a grin, kissing her hand.

"I swear… So much trouble over such a little thing… I've just got to watch my diet and exercise more…" Sarah said assuredly.

"I would like a doctor's professional opinion though… We can't trust your diagnosis of your own symptoms, you know…" Jareth said giving Sarah a knowing look.

"Who are you, my mother?" Sarah said sarcastically.

Jareth just laughed as Rory said, "If he is, your mom's got one wicked 'do, Sarah!" Then Sarah couldn't even contain their laughter, and soon all three were laughing.

XXX

The next morning, Rory panted heavily as she power-walked quickly, trying to keep up with Sarah.

"Tell me… again… why…. you're… exercising… before… a doctor's… appointment???" Rory said huffing and puffing.

Sarah expertly regulated her breathing as she handed a flask filled with water to Rory. "Because, I'm as healthy as a horse… and I want to make sure that Gryphön is able to convince you and Jareth of that…" Sarah said.

"Right, but usually shortness of breath and sweating leads a doctor to the worst…" Rory said, beginning to mimic Sarah's rhythmic breathing technique.

"Well then, we've got to be sure that we make it clear to him that _you've_ had all your shots and you're healthy, now won't we??" Sarah said with an impish grin at Rory.

"Oh, right… me… well that's very funn—" Rory said, but then suddenly stopped as Sarah began to stagger and clutched a wall to the castle for support. "Sarah! Sarah, are you okay…"

"Wha… oh, yes… yes, I'll be f—" Sarah started but then suddenly began to fall as she tried to continue walking.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa whoa… just sit down here…" Rory said, holding Sarah for support, sitting her with her back against the wall, "…just breath in slowly through your nose and out slowly through your mouth… now take some of this…" She instructed, handing the flask to Sarah.

Sarah took the flask and took a long drink.

"Better?" Rory said, with a hopeful face.

"I guess… I'm just kinda light-headed…" Sarah said, pinching the bridge of her nose.

"Well… hold on a second, I'll get Sagira, and we'll help you to your room and we'll get Doctor Gryphön…" Rory said, hopping up.

Rory called for Sagira and the two helped Sarah back inside the castle and helped her settle into her bed, and called for Gryphön.

A few hours later, Rory and Sagira waited outside Sarah's bedroom as Gryphön examined Sarah and ran various tests. Sagira eventually left to finish chores but made Rory swear she would come find her the second she learned anything.

A few more hours later, Rory began to wonder if she should come back later, until Dr. Gryphön opened the door.

"Rory… I've finished my examination and tests and Sarah would like you to be in here…" he said.

Rory stood up and walked past him into Sarah and Jareth's bedroom. She took in the gorgeous décor and, knowing that Jareth could not have possibly designed it by himself, admired the nice woman's touch. Sarah sat propped up in the middle of a big canopy bed, covered in soft ivory and cream colored sheets. Sarah smiled at her, although Rory noticed the exhaustion in Sarah's eyes.

"Come on… come sit with me, Rory…" Sarah said, patting a space next to her. Rory walked over and sat down, and propped herself up next to Sarah and the two held each other's hands and looked to Gryphön.

"Well… after first running some various tests, you will be pleased to know that you are not afflicted by any disease or ailment as a result from your weight gain…" he began.

Sarah sighed, "Oh, well that's good to know…"

"Yes… but I would like to clarify my prognosis of your weight gain…" he continued.

"Should I cut down on portions? And exercise more?" Sarah said.

"No, quite the opposite… your portions should not be as large as they were before, but considerably larger than they are now, and you should not over exert yourself in your condition…"

"Huh??" Sarah said, utterly and completely lost.

"Wait, you said that Sarah's not 'afflicted by disease'… so what 'condition' is talking about??" Rory reasoned.

Gryphön paused with a twinkle in his eye as he said, "I've very pleased to tell you that you are gestational, Sarah…"

"Huh??" both Rory and Sarah said in unison.

Gryphön smiled as he elaborated, "You're enceinte… you're expecting… you're _with child_…"

Both of them gaped at Gryphön until Sarah finally stammered, "I'm… I'm I'm I'm… I'm _pregnant_?!?"

"Mmhmmm, a few weeks I'd say…" Gryphön said, packing up his things, "…in a matter of weeks you'll be halfway through your first trimester…"

"Oh my gosh… oh my gosh… oh my gosh! Sarah! You're having a baby! How could we not realize this before??" Rory exclaimed throwing her arms around Sarah.

"I'm having a baby…" Sarah repeated with a dazed expression and voice.

"Now, I'll be stopping by to check you halfway through each trimester and at the end of each trimester… I expect you to gain a little more weight… too little weight is sometimes almost as dangerous as too much weight… that, and don't overexert yourself, like that marathon you must have done this morning…" Gryphön said, walking towards the door, "…and be sure she has plenty of fluids…" he said to Rory.

"Oh, I will… thank you, Gryphön…" Rory said excitedly.

"Congratulations once again… and tell Jareth of my congratulations as well…" he said, closing the door behind him.

"Oh Jareth! Jareth is going to be so excited, Sarah!" Rory said gleefully.

"Oh, how am I going to tell him…?" Sarah said, still in a daze.

Rory paused and studied Sarah's expression than said, "You're not happy??"

"What?" Sarah looked at Rory, then let out a laugh and said, "No… no no no, I am happy! I'm just… I can't believe it! After all this time… I'm pregnant! I… just… I'm…" Sarah stammered, tears gathering in her eyes.

"You're going to be a mother…" Rory said, holding Sarah's face and smiling, tears forming at seeing Sarah's happy tears.

Sarah just smiled and laughed, "I know… Oh… and you're going to be a cousin!"

Rory beamed widely and said excitedly, "I know! I've always wanted cousins!"

Sarah couldn't stop smiling and wrapped her arms around Rory. The two hugged and cried until finally Rory said, "How are you going to tell Jareth??"

Sarah's face lit up and said, "I'll tell him at dinner tonight!"

"Oooh! And you've got to do a romantic dinner… I'll let you two eat alone… I'll eat with Sagira and the others and you can tell him over a lavish, candlelit dinner…" Rory said eagerly.

"Oh, that sounds absolutely perfect, Rory!" Sarah murmured.

"Don't worry, I'll take care of anything… I'll go tell Sagira and we'll take care of everything, don't worry… All you have to do is wait for us to come help you into your most gorgeous, elegant dress…"

"But what outfit will I look gorgeous and elegant in with my weight gain?" Sarah complained.

Rory ran to Sarah's closet and began sifting through her clothes until she stopped, a huge smile on her face.

"Sarah, you've got nothing to worry about…" Rory said, happily.

XXX

Hours later, Sagira and Rory had worked relentlessly to prepare the most amazing, romantic and candlelit dinner for Sarah to tell Jareth the good news. Sagira's reaction had been much like Sarah and Rory's, and only changed when she began squealing and shrieking happily. The hurried back to Sarah's bedroom and found her struggling to fasten her dress.

"I swear… this 'growing larger' thing is not going to be easy…" Sarah said, attempting to adjust her dress. Rory and Sagira just laughed as they began to help her put on the dress and, as Rory had called it, "glam-ify" Sarah. When both were satisfy, Rory said triumphantly, "When Jareth sees you, he's not going to know what hit him…"

"Yes, and when you tell him the good news, he's going to feel like he's a bulls-eye…" Sagira said. The three laughed and hurried out to the dining room.

XXX

Jareth sighed as he appeared outside his and Sarah's bedroom, rather dirty from dealing with the goblins the majority of the day. He knocked, and called, "Sarah… It's me…" He waited, expecting to hear her respond, and was confused to hear nothing. _Sarah usually waits for me to meet Rory for dinner together…_ Jareth thought, but then opening the door and realizing no one was there, shrugged it off, _she and Rory must be already waiting for me… Sorry girls, you two are going to have to wait… you probably wouldn't want to dine with me smelling like the Bog…_ He chuckled as he went and showered as quickly as he could. He magically dried his large mane and selected his favorite poet shirt and pants, and slipped on a vest. His magically cleaned boots slid onto his feet and he walked to the dining room.

He reached for the handle of the dining room door, but paused. He heard giggling, and could've sworn Rory and Sagira disappear around the corner. He shook his head, thinking, _Wow… I guess I'm more worn out than I thought… _He opened the door, and frowned as he found the room dimly lit.

"What… what is going—" Jareth began, until he saw in the glow of the fireplace, leaning against the wall was Sarah. Jareth drank in her image, feelings stirring at seeing his wife in her position. Sarah was leaning against the wall just past the fireplace, and the light danced along her figure. She looked exquisitely curvy, wearing a green ensemble of silk in different shades layering and crossing over the previous, draping gracefully on her figure. The green only served to highlight and intensify her bright green eyes, which seemed to glow in the firelight.

"Well… hello…" Jareth said, with a devilish grin.

The corners of Sarah's mouth slowly climbed into a captivating smile as she crooned, " 'Hello' yourself…"

Jareth sauntered over to her and with his hand comfortably placed in the curve of her hip, gently pulled her towards him and kissed her. Sarah almost lost herself, but reminded herself of her plan to play with Jareth a little before telling him. Gently, with her hand on his chest, Sarah pushed away from Jareth and gazed into her eyes. Jareth gazed back into her eyes, enticed by seeing a hidden agenda… what agenda that was hidden was another story.

"So… what's going on…?" he asked.

"We're having dinner by ourselves… Rory's eating with Sagira…" Sarah said, her tone still crooning in a seductive, enticing blend.

"Hmm… interesting… I like the privacy already…" he said grinning, kissing Sarah again, but was disappointed when she pulled away again.

"Oh, don't worry… we're just getting started…" Sarah said, with a gentle grip on Jareth's shirt, leading him to the table. Jareth smirked as Sarah continued to command him in such a tantalizing way.

The table was gorgeously set for two with delicious dishes for a couple to share and Sarah took the opportunity to feed Jareth the majority of dinner. Jareth was pleasantly surprised and enjoyed the unanticipated indulgence. He especially enjoyed the fresh peaches that he and Sarah fed each other.

"So…" Jareth said, chewing and swallowing a piece of peach, "…what brought about this special treatment?"

"Well…" Sarah began, feeding Jareth another piece, "…I saw Gryphön today…"

"Mmhmm?" Jareth murmured as he chewed on the peach, then swallowed, "…and?"

"Well… the good news is… I'm… not sick…from the weight gain that is…" Sarah said, unintentionally dragging it out longer than she wanted to.

"Uh huh, that's great… is that all?" Jareth said, taking an particularly large piece of peach.

"Well… um…" Sarah said, taking a deep breath, then turning to look into Jareth's eyes, "…Jareth?"

"Mmhmm?" Jareth murmured, trying his best to chew the peach.

"…I'm pregnant…" Sarah blurted out.

Jareth suddenly began coughing and gagging and beating his fist with his chest.

"Jareth? Jareth!" Sarah said, clapping him on the back, not expecting choking as his response.

Jareth finally dislodged the peach from his throat and breathed deeply, gathering air into his lungs again.

"You're…. You're pregnant!?" he said, in between gasps.

"Yes…" Sarah said, tenderly gazing at Jareth.

"You're… I mean…" Jareth stammered, "… Oh my… Sarah! You're having a baby! We're having a baby! We're going to have a child!" He exclaimed suddenly getting up and spinning Sarah around.

"I know I know! I couldn't believe it either!" Sarah laughed happily. Jareth suddenly put Sarah down and began pacing.

"Now we're going to have to get a crib, and we'll have to get bottles, and formula…" then not really talking to Sarah, "…or do you want to breast feed? But we'll probably need a rocking chair… and toys, and diapers…. We need to get—" Jareth continued as he began to walk to the door.

"Whoa whoa whoa whoa, hold it right there you…" Sarah said, rushing in front of Jareth blocking his exit, "…we've got plenty of time for that, Jareth… I'm not even halfway through my first trimester yet…"

Jareth stopped, realizing how driven he'd suddenly become and said reasonably, "You're right… We've got plenty of time…" he smiled a toothy grin as he added, "…until the baby comes…"

Sarah giggled as Jareth pulled her to him and he kissed her, his love pouring out as his tongue slowly invaded her mouth and danced with her tongue. His mouth left hers as he trailed kisses down her neck, breathing in her hair.

"I'm so proud of you…" he murmured into her hair as he kissed the nape of her neck.

Sarah giggled as she ran her fingers through his wild mane, "Well… I had a little bit of help…"

Jareth's gaze rose up to Sarah's and with a mischievous smile, he slid his hands down her sides slowly creeping further back and pulling her to him, "Oh, yes… I think I'm starting to remember…"

Sarah gasped, feeling his hardness against her, begging to be taken care of. Seeing the desire that they'd both felt throughout dinner reflecting in his eyes, Sarah pulled away, and walked around Jareth, letting her hand trail along his chest and back and down his arm to take his hand.

"Well… allow me to…" she placed her lips to his ear and whispered, "…_arouse_ your memory…" and began to lead him from the dining room.

"Oh, what you do to me…" Jareth groaned as Sarah led him to their bedroom.

When they were safely inside their bedroom, Jareth turned to grab Sarah and kiss her, but the tips of her fingers were at his lips.

"Now…" Sarah murmured, "…as the one that is carrying another life, and will have to go through 9 months of swollen ankles, mood swings, cravings, and being kicked by said 'another life' internally…. _I_ am in charge…" she said commandingly.

Jareth gazed at her, amazed and aroused by her forcefulness, and replied with a growling voice, "…Fair enough…"

Sarah half-smiled as she let her fingertips trace Jareth's thin lips, then trail his jaw to his neck and across his chest, and she slowly slid his vest off. Running her hands across his chest, she was unsatisfied and soon took his shirt off as well. Jareth's hands had tried to find their way around to the back of Sarah's dress until she moved his hands away and said softly but commandingly, "No… You'll do whatever I tell you to… and you will _not_ move unless I direct you to…"

"Hmm… feeling quite bossy tonight, aren't we?" he said with an impish grin. Sarah just moved until her lips were a hair's width away from his and she slid her hands along his pants, near his groin boldly.

"You better believe it…" she said erotically.

Jareth sucked in a breath, using all he had within him not to touch Sarah back.

"You tease…" he said.

Sarah just chuckled as she continued to feel his bare chest. She kissed the edge of his mouth, then trailed kisses along his jaw until she stopped and kissed the hollow of his throat. Jareth continued to built up his wall of resistance from touching Sarah, but it was growing harder and harder as Sarah slowly undid his pants.

Sarah temptingly trailed her fingers along his hardened manhood, "Hmm… you need me don't you?"

"Yes…" Jareth said clenching his fists.

"You… _want_ me, don't you?" she continued, holding his hips and guiding him towards the bed.

"Desperately…" Jareth responded, closing his eyes, trying to gain control over his desires and body.

"Good…" Sarah crooned as she pushed him gently back onto their bed. Jareth felt the pillows propped up against the headboard as he laid down against them, leaving him in a reclining position. Sarah continued to undo his pants and slipped off his pants after slipping off his boots.

"There… we wouldn't want you to have a bad view…" Sarah said knowingly.

Jareth looked at Sarah curiously, and watched as Sarah turned and said, "Jareth… I need you to unlace the back of my dress now… nothing less, and nothing more… But I'd prefer you do it slowly…"

Jareth held his breath as he slowly began to untie the back of her dress, unlacing and feeding all the strips of fabric, revealing soft, supple skin. After he finished, he couldn't help but let a hand trail down her back. Sarah grinned to herself as she said, "Are you finished…?"

"Yes…" Jareth's voice was low, almost cracking. Sarah smiled and turned slowly, holding her dress in the front, her breasts crushing together. Jareth gazed at her supple breasts and groaned, keeping himself in check.

"Just hold that thought, Jareth" Sarah grinned, reading his thoughts, and slowly began to peel the dress away from body after she kicked off her shoes.

Jareth watched in awe as the brilliant green dress slid along her porcelain skin and slowly fell to the floor. Sarah lightly let her hands trail along her breasts, taking pleasure in Jareth struggling to restrain himself. She loved knowing she had as much influence over him as he did her.

She slowly climbed onto the bed, straddling Jareth with a knee on either side of him. She carefully leaned in to place a lingering kiss on his lips.

"Oh, god, Sarah… please let me touch you…" Jareth whimpered. Sarah placed a finger to Jareth's lips and whispered, "Not yet…" and she slowly descended further down.

"Oh, god… Sarah…" Jareth gasped, knowing what was coming. Sarah's hands slowly wrapped around his manhood and began satisfy it's steel hard demands. Jareth gasped as her hands slowly tortured him, and then groaned when her mouth replaced her hands.

"Oh my… oh… oh, yes… Sarah…" Jareth groaned as her rhythm and boldness increased.

"Sarah… Sarah!" Jareth cried, using every bit of his control to hold back.

Sarah saw Jareth struggling to contain himself, and rose up over him, and took him within her. She sighed as he filled her, and he grunted, "Oh, yes, I need you, I need you Sarah…"

She slowly began to move up and down, falling down against him, driving him absolutely mad. Jareth's fists grabbed the sheets and blanket around them.

"God…. Sarah… let me touch you…" Jareth begged as her silky smoothness brought him intense bliss. Sarah didn't respond, she only quickened her movements, and suddenly spun around. Jareth gasped at the sensation of her spinning around him with him still inside her, and she continued her movements.

Her head fell back and her long dark hair grazed along her smooth, pale back and bottom. It was such an amazing, sensual picture she had painted for him and he continued to beg, "Please… Sarah, I _must_ touch you…"

Feeling him inside her, so close, so exquisitely close at a new angle and rhythm, drove Sarah crazy.

"Yes… yes… touch me…" she panted. As soon as the words were from her mouth, Jareth's hands were running up and down Sarah's sides, cupping her breasts and bottom.

"Oh yes… yes… yes, Jareth…" Sarah moaned. Jareth knew they were both moments away from peaking, so with one hand on Sarah's bump of her belly, his other hand slid down further, and stroked her, knowing they'd both be close together.

"Oh yes!" Sarah cried, her hands finding Jareth's, holding the one to her stomach and guiding the other to the spot and into a rhythm that drove her insane.

"Oh yes… oh yes!" Sarah cried loudly and euphorically, "…yes… YES!! OHHH!" She screamed as her climax hit her like a tsunami she felt all over her body as she continued to forcefully slam her body down on Jareth's, white waves of ecstasy consuming her.

Sarah clamped tightly down on Jareth and continued to ride him with a tight grip as she slammed their bodies together, and a roar emerged from Jareth's throat as he climaxed. He grabbed her hips and pumped into them with all he had left in him.

Both spent, Sarah fell back onto Jareth, her hair falling in his face. He breathed in the scent, the smell of honey sandalwood warming him. He moved from under her, and tenderly kissed her.

"Where did that come from?" Jareth asked curiously.

Sarah chuckled and said, "You make it very easy to be spontaneous and creative…"

Jareth arched an eyebrow, "Do I?" Sarah just smiled and leaned her head up to kiss him again. Jareth kissed Sarah devotedly, and moved along her body, kissing her collarbone, her shoulders, then moving and giving each breast it's deserving attention, and then came to rest on her stomach. He rubbed it gently, kissing it lightly, all the while murmuring, "Hello… I'm your daddy… you are going to be the most beautiful baby in the entire world…" he gazed up at Sarah and added, "…beautiful just like your mommy…"

Sarah smiled happily and said, "Like their daddy…" Jareth just smiled and continued to talk to Sarah's stomach.

"I just hope that you don't get her stubbornness as well… she can be quite pigheaded sometimes…"

"Me?! You're just as stubborn as I am, if not more…" Sarah said defensively.

"Ah ah ah…" Jareth said, "…from now on, no more fighting… we can't have the baby absorbing any of our negative energy…"

"It's a baby, not an alien, Jareth…" Sarah said with an exasperated but amused sigh.

"But even if you were an alien," He said, continuing with his baby talk to Sarah's stomach, "you'd still be the most adorable, sweet, beautiful, smart, radiant, angelic baby in the whole world…"

Sarah just shook her head and rolled her eyes with a smile, as she began playing with his long blonde locks.

"Hey… why don't you send a little of that attention my way?" she said playfully.

"Oh, of course… how thoughtless of me…" he said with a grin, moving back up and taking her lips with his own. Sarah giggled as Jareth kissed her and he tucked his head in the nape of her neck, drawing lazy patterns along her stomach. Sarah wrapped one arm around him and the other hand traced patterns along with his hand until it stopped and rested on top of Jareth's.

"We're having a baby…" Jareth murmured.

"Mmhmm…" Sarah murmured happily.

"We're going to be parents…" he added.

"Mmhmmm…"

"Scary thought isn't it?"

"Hmm… scary exciting…" Sarah corrected.

"Scary exciting…" Jareth repeated.

"I love you…"

"I love you too…"

"I love both of you…"

"So do I…"

The couple laid there, more content than they'd ever been, Jareth's hand resting on top of Sarah's bump, with hers on his. That night, 3 heartbeats beat in the King and Queen's bedroom, 2 beating more proudly than they'd ever beat before.

Author's Note: Aw, so how was that? This is gonna be fun, but I'm going to have to research pregnancy a bit, since, well…. I don't know much about it at all! But I'll have plenty of time, since I'll be on vacation in Mexico until the 27th, and then I'll be leaving again on the 29th and I won't be back until August 12th! I know I know, you'll miss me like crazy, but I'll be back soon… R&R!


	12. Ch12: You Have No Power Over Me

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Author's Note: So I know I've been AWAL longer than the 3 weeks I mentioned previously, but things have been really hectic and I wanted to write a really good chapter, now that I've finally let the cat out of the bag about Sarah's pregnancy… And just a warning, I may have brought up terminology in the last chapter like, trimester, but seeing as how I've never been pregnant, I probably won't be able to use terminology out the wazoo… but I have had friends go through pregnancy and I've read enough that I (hope I) can describe the experience of pregnancy…

Oh, and I'm going to put the _**M-rated material**_ disclaimer up again… -grins mischievously- what? Sarah and Jareth are a very happy couple! They just found out they're going to have their first child!

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline, the fanfic it is based off of, and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Chapter Twelve: _You Have No Power Over Me…_

Things had really begun to change in the Underground; some of the goblins were confused. Jareth's attitude and demeanor towards them hadn't changed, but Jareth's overall appearance had. His normally pale skin had a hint of color to it, a little blush in his cheek. His different colored eyes seemed brighter somehow. And there was a strange gait to his walk that hadn't been there before. Rumors began flying about the Underground until finally, Sarah and Jareth officially confirmed the kingdom's suspicions: a prince or princess of the Goblins was to be born. And the goblins were amazed that it took them that long to notice, because a few months into her pregnancy, Sarah really showed it.

Rory and Sagira were more than happy to help Sarah get the baby's affairs in order, with the first thing being to set up a special nursery for the babe. Even though Jareth asked Sarah to let the servants do the manual labor of preparing the nursery, so that she wouldn't have to overexert herself, she waved his concern away, insisting that she was fit for working on the baby's room. The day that Sarah announced that they would be painting the baby's room was the day that Rory met Mizelle.

Rory was painting the back wall with the beautiful bay window when a young goblin walked in. She couldn't have been more than 9 or 10 years old, and she had long blonde hair that had be brushed back into two low pigtails that draped across her shoulders. She was dressed similarly to Sagira in servant clothing. Rory hadn't even heard her enter, so when she reached down to add more paint to her paintbrush, she nearly fell off the ladder in surprise.

"Oh! Oh I'm so sorry! I didn't mean to give you a fright!" the goblin girl said, rushing to Rory's side, spotting her in case she did lose her balance.

"Oh, no… It's all right… I just didn't expect… Well I mean I did expect someone, just not you… but it's not that I don't want you to be here…." Rory said, flabbergasted.

The girl just studied Rory as Rory continued to ramble idly. Finally Rory stopped herself, took a breath to gather herself, then extended the cleaner hand and said, "Hello, it's very nice to meet you… I'm Rory…"

The girl took Rory's outstretched hand, but her eyes got wider as Rory said her name.

"You're Rory?!? _The_ Rory?!? Sarah and Jareth's niece?!?!" the girl said excitedly.

"Uh, yeah…" Rory said with an uneasy smile.

"Oh! I've been wanting to meet you for sooooo long! I'm…" the girl started but was suddenly interrupted by a gasp in the doorway. The gasp was followed by the echo of paintbrushes hitting the floor, and the girl and Rory looked at the doorway and saw Sarah standing there with a shocked expression on her face.

"MIZELLE!!!" Sarah shrieked happily.

"SARAH!!" Mizelle shrieked just as equally happy as the two flew towards each other and grabbed the other hugging and shrieking happily.

"Oh! I've missed you so much! Jareth told me that you were on the other end of the Underground and he didn't know if you'd be back!" Sarah said, still hugging Mizelle.

"I know… Jareth had to take me and some of the other goblins away for a while, but it turned out alright… he found some nice goblin families to take care of us and so they raised us for the most part, but they realized how much I missed the castle and you and Jareth, so they asked Jareth if there was room for another servant and he said that I could be a sort of 'apprentice' to Sagira!" Mizelle said, retelling her story.

"Oh, I'm so glad you're back!" Sarah kept repeating, hugging Mizelle tighter and tighter.

The two stayed in the same position, making Rory feel awkward, but she still didn't want to break the Kodak moment. That was not the same with Sagira. Sagira soon walked in and saw the scene, with Rory standing awkwardly in the background and cleared her throat.

"Oh!!" both Mizelle and Sarah said at the same time, breaking apart.

"Sorry to break up the picture perfect moment…" Sagira said, walking past with cans of paint, Rory shooting her grateful looks.

"Oh no, no that's fine…" Sarah said quickly, then looked at Rory and said, "Oh, Rory, I'm so sorry, where've my manners gone…" she gently pushed Mizelle towards Rory and said with a smile, "Rory this is Mizelle… Mizelle was just a tiny goblin child when I arrived in the Underground and I grew very fond of her… Mizelle this is…"

"Oh, Rory! Oh she's already introduced herself to me… I was just about to introduce myself…" Mizelle said excitedly.

"Well I'm glad that you guys have met…" Sarah said with a smile.

"Yes… I'm just… surprised…" Rory said.

Both Sarah and Mizelle looked at Rory inquisitively, Mizelle really looking _up_ at Rory because Rory was taller than she was.

"Why?" Sarah asked.

"Well… It's just… Mizelle's very well spoken for someone her age…" Rory said, trying to verbalize her thoughts.

Sarah and Mizelle looked at each other than Sarah said, "Well what's her age, Rory?" By this time, Sagira had become interested in the conversation and had wandered back to the group.

"Um… well…" Rory said, looking at Sagira then back at Sarah and Mizelle, "…I mean, she looks maybe 9 or 10… right?"

As she said her thoughts on Mizelle's age, Sarah, Mizelle and Sagira suddenly began laughing, which greatly confused Rory.

"Uh, did I say something funny?" Rory asked.

"How old do you think I am, Rory? 18? 19?" Sagira suddenly interjected.

"Uh, yeah… I mean, that's what I thought…" Rory said.

"Rory, technically, Sagira is 39 years old, and Mizelle is 29…" Sarah elaborated.

"WHAT?!?!?!" Rory said.

"Rory… I've been here 25 years… in the Underground, aging happens differently… Jareth looks exactly like he did when he kidnapped your dad from me… Looks wise, Sagira and Mizelle have only aged 4 or 5 years… 'Things aren't always what they seem in this place…'" Sarah said with a little smirk.

"Oh… well I guess that makes sense…" Rory said, "…Is there anything else I should know?"

"Well if there is anything we've missed, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it…" Mizelle said knowingly.

Everyone paused, then started laughing at Mizelle's wise declaration. Then the group began to paint the nursery pastel yellow—that way, Sarah said, it didn't matter if the baby was a boy or girl. Jareth didn't oppose, but only until Sarah began coordinating a border, accessories, and the like.

"Ducks?!? Why ducks?!?" Jareth said incredulously.

"Because they're cute and adorable, and for the last time, Jareth, they're not ducks, they're ducklings… you know, baby ducks? Since they're, oh I don't know, smaller and cuter than normal sized ducks?" Sarah said, putting various duck decorations about.

"Fine fine fine… 'ducklings'… but I just think that it's a little degrading…"

"How are ducklings degrading?" Sarah asked.

"I don't know… it all is just rather silly and I think the silliness would be degrading to our child…" he said, holding a rather odd duckling bookend with a trail of ducklings following a mother duck.

"You know what? Our child can deal with a little silliness if he or she is really that concerned with what his or her room looks like, because, other than the fact he or she is a baby and babies don't usually care what their nursery looks like, I am the one carrying him or her around right now and I will be the one changing his or her diaper… and besides, a baby's first words are usually 'mama' or 'dada', not 'bad duck'…"

"You're doing it again…"

"What?!? What am I doing?! But better yet, what am I doing 'again'?!?!"

"You're getting high-strung over a little thing again…"

"Well you know what? I am working my irregularly large buns off on this baby's room while you are off frolicking in the Labyrinth and the Underground and I don't need this kind of stupid opposition to one minor detail to all my hard work!!!" Sarah said, panting after her rant and taking a seat in a bright yellow rocking chair and trying to catch her breath as she rocked back and forth.

"Hey… Sarah… I'm sorry…" Jareth said, moving around the back of the rocking chair and massaging Sarah's shoulders, "…I wasn't trying to nit-pick 'one minor detail to all your hard work'… I think you're doing an amazing job with the baby's room…"

"You do?" Sarah said in a tiny voice, her unbalanced hormones getting the best of her and making her get emotional.

"Of course I do…" Jareth said wrapping his arms around the rocking chair and Sarah and putting his chin on her shoulder, "…and don't be so hard on yourself…" he smirked then brought his lips to her ear and whispered, "…I quite fancy those 'irregularly large buns' of yours…"

Sarah giggled then surprised Jareth when she hopped up and said, "Well I hope you're not expecting to get a piece of them after you called me 'high-strung'…"

Jareth raised an eyebrow and said with fake shock, "Is that a threat?"

Sarah backed slowly to the door but then said, "Oh, no… no no no… of course not… it's a _promise_…" then made a run for it, with Jareth running after her.

"Oh no you don't…" Jareth said chasing her, "…making threats and promises to a king will get you in a lot of trouble, milady…"

Sarah laughed as she eluded Jareth, even in her enlarged state, turning erratically through different corridors to lose him.

"Maybe that's a chance I'm willing to ta—" Sarah called over her shoulder, but then stopped as she ran into a soft wall blocking her from making her next turn. But then the wall grabbed her and gently pushed her up against a hard wall.

"Hey, no fair! You know Gryphön said I can't magically transport in my condition…" Sarah pouted as Jareth pinned her against the wall.

Jareth just shrugged and said with a toothy grin, "'All's fair in love'…"

"'And war…'" Sarah added, raising her eyebrows threateningly.

"No… just love…" Jareth said, bringing his lips to Sarah's. Sarah kissed him back but refused to let him have the last word. She broke her lips away from his and put on her best scolding façade.

"What have I told you about clichés, Jareth?"

"Me? What about you? 'You have no power over me'…" he retorted with a raised eyebrow.

Sarah put on her most serious face and said, "You have no power over me…"

Jareth read her expression and was surprised by how serious she seemed but studying her eyes made him smirk.

"Liar…" he said as he leaned forward again and placed a poignant kiss on her lips.

Sarah couldn't help herself and wrapped her arms around Jareth's neck, willing to let him have the last word. The two knew what needed to be done and Sarah was the first to break the kiss, which left both gasping for more, and said, "Let's go…" and took Jareth's hand and led them to their bedroom. Both were inwardly cursing Sarah for weaving throughout the hallways, since she took them to the other end of the castle _away_ from their bedroom. That and Sarah couldn't transport while she was pregnant.

They finally made it, and all but pushed each other into the room, slamming the door behind them. Both were on the other in a frenzy, but Jareth was the one that realized that the speed needed to be slowed down a bit, and broke away.

"Sarah… Sarah…Sarah…" Jareth said trying to get his wife's attention, but she was too busy placing kisses along his jaw and neck, making it very difficult for him to concentrate.

"Sarah… Sarah…." Jareth said, finally holding Sarah's face in his hands, making her stop and look at him. Actually stopping for a moment let Sarah collect herself, and all she said was, "Wow…"

"Wow…" Jareth repeated. The two just stood there studying each other's eyes until Sarah broke away and sat down on their bed.

"Wow… we were like a couple of hormonal teenagers…" Sarah said. Jareth just laughed and took a seat next to her and began tracing patterns on her hand. Sarah couldn't help herself, her body still tingling with desire and need, and said, "but you were right…"

Jareth said nothing and kept tracing patterns on her hand, and so Sarah elaborated, "…I'm the biggest liar in the world…" This made Jareth's head tilt up to look at Sarah, and he was met with Sarah's intense green eyes boring into his.

"…You'll probably never understand just how much power you have over me…" she said with such intensity, that the tingly feeling of desire and need spread from her to Jareth and turned into a spreading wave of desire in both.

Without a word, Jareth took Sarah's face in his hands again, holding her face gently and studying it intensely. He then leaned over and began kissing every inch of her face lightly. He kissed every inch: the sides of her face, her forehead, her nose, her eyelids, her cheekbones, the corners of her lips, her chin, and then fully on her lips before pulling away to gaze at her face.

Sarah was finally able to gain some control over her senses again and her eyelids fluttered open. Jareth studied her face for a while, then placed another kiss on her lips, neither giving way to the waves of passion they both held at bay. They kissed like they had that day after they'd been horse back riding, when they'd kissed for the first time. It was like they'd gone back in time, with the same feeling of newness in the kiss, both kissing like it was the first time kissing at all.

When they broke the kiss, Jareth gathered his thoughts and said, "That is most certainly true…But the other thing I'll probably never understand is… how every time you surprise me… and how it is you so easily take my breath away… I'm lucky if I'm able to remember how to breathe again at all…"

Sarah just gazed at Jareth then leaned her head over and kissed Jareth's cheek. She paused and then began kissing along his jawbone as her hands began working on the buttons of his poet shirt. Once it was unbuttoned, she moved and kissed Jareth fully on the lips, her hand on the back of his head, intensifying the kiss. Jareth felt Sarah's longing and obliged by opening his mouth as he felt her tongue traced his thin lips.

They wrapped their arms around each other as their tongues danced slowly, as if memorizing every moment. His hands were just below her shoulder blades, pressing them closer together. Her hands were at the base of his head, deepening the kiss, her tongue exploring his mouth. Then her hands moved down and slid Jareth's shirt off, holding his strong shoulders. As her hands were taking off his shirt, Jareth's hands had moved from below her shoulder blades to her lower back, twisting and gripping the fabric of her cottony peasant top. Sarah knew that her shirt had no buttons or lacing, so she broke away from Jareth's mouth and held her arms up. When she did, Jareth gently kissed her along the bottom of her jawbone as his fingers grasped the hem of her shirt. The shirt was gone quickly, leaving Sarah in a thin, silky chemise which Jareth tugged with slight frustration as he moved his lips down her jaw and neck, kissing the nape of her neck.

"I want to feel all of you, Sarah…" Jareth said in a quiet voice.

"So do I…" Sarah gasped, lifting her arms once again. The chemise was gone faster than the peasant shirt was and once again, the couple's arms were entwined around each other, reveling of the feel of skin on skin. Sarah's fingers trailed along Jareth's back, pleasuring in the cool ripples of muscles and her cheek rested on his shoulder while her lips placed sweet kisses on it. Jareth's fingertips traced patterns into Sarah's back like they always did in little intimate moments they had; but his control lessened as the feel of Sarah's hands along his back, her lips upon his skin, and her breasts crushing delightfully against his chest elicited more waves of libidinous desire within him.

Jareth's hands moved further down and held Sarah's bottom, caressing it gently then squeezing it suggestively.

"Feel all of me, Jareth…" Sarah said, reading Jareth's thoughts as her own hands and tucked themselves below the waistband of his trousers, and pulled away from him and laid down on their bed.

Jareth watched his wife and he lowered down to her and with hunger in his eyes, he drank in the sight of her body as he peeled her last articles of clothing, her skirt and underwear, off. After he had slid her skirt and underwear down her legs, he looked her up and down began kissing her. He started at her feet and worked his way up her legs, then kissed her waist and stomach, cradling her growing belly gently, then gave equal attention to her sensitized breasts.

The feeling of Jareth's lips all over her body drove Sarah crazy with anticipation, and he slowly made his way down her body again, kissing ever inch of her. When he got to her knee, however, he slowly made his descent up, pushing her legs apart and kissing the insides of her thighs. He kept moving up until he made his destination at the junction of her thighs and proceeded to pleasure her, with only one goal in mind: to throw his wife over the edge of sensual pleasure and satisfaction.

His movements were slow and calculated as his tongue stroked her with skill. Sarah's body immediately relaxed, Jareth's tongue soothing her nerves, and her head rolled back.

"Oh… Jareth…" Sarah gasped as Jareth's tongue continued to please her, stroking all the right places, teasing all the right nerves, but her body soon tensed as Jareth's tongue grew bolder, drinking in her essence.

"Oh, god… Jareth… Oh my god…" Sarah panted, her legs instinctively closing to take Jareth in further. But Jareth pushed Sarah's legs apart to give him better access and then took hold of her backside to go deeper and raised her hips up ever so slightly.

"Oh… Jareth… I… I can feel it coming…" Sarah gasped, gripping Jareth's head. Jareth responded by intensifying his actions and bringing his tongue to the one spot that he knew would send her over edge. As he rolled his tongue over her sensitive spot, the waves that Sarah had felt growing exploded over her body in huge, cataclysmic waves of ecstasy and euphoria and she moaned his name as her head fell back.

Jareth pulled away from her and moved back up and kissed her neck as he wrapped his arms around her, his need painfully apparent.

"You take my breath away, Sarah… Your beauty… your spirit… your _desire_…" he said as he pressed his hips against hers. Feeling his hardness pulled Sarah from her numbed utopia, and she responded by grinding her hips into his.

"Take me Jareth… I want you to be inside of me… _Both_ of you…" Sarah said, emotion in her throat. Jareth's head hung at the reverence of her words. He kissed her devotedly and caressed her cheek with one hand.

"I love you…" he said and as he caressed her stomach with the other hand, he said, "…and I love you…" then he took her lips again as he thrust into her quickly. Sarah's gasp was lost in their kiss, which continued as they made love with their arms wrapped around each other. They would gasp as they became closer and closer and their passion became higher and higher. Their orgasms hit close together but Sarah could tell Jareth was still wound tight.

"Oh, no… Don't you stop…I'm not done with you yet…" Sarah said, flipping Jareth over, with him still buried within her. She kissed him fiercely, and when she broke away and lifted herself off of his body, Jareth caressed her stomach and said, "You'd better watch out for your mother… she's a wild one…"

Sarah smirked devilishly and said, "You haven't seen nothing yet…" Her palms flattened against his chest and made circles as her hips simply ground into his, causing him to grow hard all over again. He clenched his teeth as Sarah slowly moved her torso and laid halfway down on his thighs. Her feet were on either side of his torso and her hands were on either side of his legs, as if she were sitting on him, with him still inside her. The angle in which she held herself made her hips place pressure on his, intensifying the angle in which he was inside of her……and it drove him crazy with pleasure.

"Oh, yes… Yes… Sarah…" Jareth moaned. Sarah used the leverage of her feet and hands to prop her up as she pushed her hips down upon Jareth's. She could feel his tension slowly beginning to crumble as she quickened her pace, slamming their hips together with more force.

"Oh, god… Sarah… I love you Sarah, god I love you…" Jareth moaned as he gripped her hips and pulled her down onto him, enveloping him with her velvety silk.

"I love you, Jareth… with every fiber of my being…" Sarah gasped as his steel hardness dove into her deeper and deeper with every thrust, his hips pumping into hers, creating a beautiful rhythm that brought both of them heaven on earth. As she climaxed again, Sarah knew that there would never be anything that could give her such exquisite bliss as making love to Jareth. And Jareth felt the same way.

Finally the wall within Jareth fully crumbled and he grunted loudly as Sarah's inner muscles clenched more tightly then they had ever done before. Even as the orgasmic waves washed over Sarah again, she slammed her body down upon Jareth's until he let go and emptied all of himself within her, all of his love and essence.

The whole experience left Sarah completely spent, and Jareth pulled himself up and he gently took her into his arms and Sarah all but collapsed into him, wrapping her arms around him and holding onto his shoulders. Jareth buried his head into her hair and sighed.

"God you're amazing…" he breathed as he fell back, pulling Sarah down with him.

"Mmmm…." Sarah murmured as she kissed his shoulder and collarbone.

"I told you… you always surprise me… and you take my breath away… and I'll never understand how you do it…" Jareth said, stroking her long dark locks.

"Who am I kidding? I'll never in _a million years_ be able to grasp just how much power you have over me…" Sarah murmured. Jareth just chuckled and held Sarah's chin up to bring her lips back up to his. They kissed with the devoted and shameless passion they'd just shared, then Sarah rested her head on Jareth's chest, their arms entwining each other.

"I'd be lying if I said I wasn't scared, though, Sarah…" Jareth said after a while.

"About what?" Sarah asked without moving.

"About the baby… About being responsible for another life… You and Rory mean so much to me… And now I'll have another life in my hands… What if something happens? What if I do something wrong?" Jareth said, raw emotions and feelings in his voice.

"As far as I see, this baby's got it pretty good… The two people who love him or her most in the whole wide world are going to be there for him or her through anything and everything… And that's all we can do… That's as much as we can give…" Sarah murmured.

Jareth sighed and kissed Sarah's head, "I am in love all over again… and the only other person that could ever come as close to me loving as much as you is our child…"

Sarah smiled as she murmured, "Ditto…"

"We've created a new life, Sarah… That's so incredible… We're going to bring a new being into existence… That's so unbelievably extraordinary… We're going to be parents… You are going to be a mother, and…. I'm going to be a father…"

Sarah smiled as she looked up at Jareth, love shining in her eyes, "You're going to be a father…"

Jareth just smiled a toothy smile and kissed Sarah's nose then rested his chin upon her head. The couple fell asleep dreaming of a bright future, filled with happiness, love, and lots of children.

Author's Note: Sorry, this chapter was supposed to be mostly about Mizelle's reappearance to the series, but… gosh, I just can't get enough of Sarah and Jareth, especially now that Sarah's carrying their first child… And I know that the whole goblin-aging thing is probably really f-ed up, but I thought that it'd be an interesting twist in the plotline if goblins aged differently than Sarah and Jareth and Rory… More to come! R&R!!!


	13. Ch13: For my will is as strong as yours

Though We're Strangers Till Now…:

Sequel to _The Way Forward Is Sometimes The Way Back_

Disclaimer: _I do not, in any way, shape, or form own __**Labyrinth**__, its characters, its scenes, or quotes. They all belong to the geniuses Jim Henson, George Lucas, David Bowie, Brian Froud, Dennis Lee, Terry Jones, & Trevor Jones. I only own this fanfic storyline and the characters I made up (if I make up any). _

Author's Note: Okay, I really deserve the award for biggest a-hole in the world for almost abandoning this story for so long… Published: 08-16-06 - Updated: 08-21-07 It makes me cringe… over 2 years since I published it and over a year since I last updated it?!?!?!?!? WTF???? Well… I'm not the one who deserves the credit for continuing with this story… _A Certain Step Towards Falling In Love_ (.net/s/4647692/1/), a **Twilight** fanfic by lamiapoeta, has become my vice… It is an addictive and inventive fanfiction, and I figure if she's can find the time to write that sinfully good story as a grad student working on her thesis, I can find the time to continue with this story… I had used writer's block as an excuse to put this on the shelf for over a year, and I owe it to my readers and myself to finish it. I think I've finally come up with a plotline that I can be happy with, and it'll probably evolve as I'm writing (or I can always hope that it will add on more and get better) so without further ado…

Chapter Thirteen:___For my will is as strong as yours…_

Things had been going very well in the Underground. The kingdom rejoiced as the news of Sarah's pregnancy had spread throughout the Labyrinth and all its surroundings. Rory felt that the past 8 months had been so amazing. She was afraid that it was all a dream and at any moment she was going to wake up and it was all going to be over. But as more days past, Rory's fears and worries faded away more and more. And with the entire kingdom already sending in presents for the baby prince or princess, Rory decided a baby shower was well over due.

She worked with Sagira to sort through the already numerous baby presents that Sarah and Jareth had already received, and soon before they knew it, they were decorating the throne room with ducks and other baby-themed decorations.

"You know," Rory said to Sagira, stringing up a banner with little baby ducks on it, "I think Sarah was onto something with the ducks. I mean regardless if it's a boy or girl, these are adorable and have to be irresistible to children. What do you think?"

"I agree. They are absolutely adorable." Sagira smiled as she placed more rubber duckies into the giant decorative bowl filled with yellow lemonade punch.

Rory and Sagira turned towards the stairwell as they heard a commotion and a jumble of voices.

"Sarah, stop! Rory said that she'd send for us when she and Sagira were done! You're going to spoil the surprise!"

"Jareth, I'm a pregnant woman on a mission, don't even try to get in my way!"

Rory giggled along with Sagira. They had pretty much figured that they would be unable to keep Sarah away for too long, even in her condition, so Sagira and some of the other servants began to work while Rory, Jareth, and Sarah had breakfast to get a jumpstart.

Rory casually walked towards the entrance to the stairwell with Sagira to meet an out of breath and enlarged Sarah bounding towards them, with Jareth trailing close behind.

"Sorry girls, I did my best…" Jareth said, sheepishly.

"It's all good, Jareth…" Rory shrugged, "we're finished anyway… you like it?" She said to Sarah.

Sarah's eyes were the size of saucers as she looked around the throne room. Ducks had invaded every nook and cranny of the stone hall, whether it was in the form of banners, streamers, balloons, or actual rubber duckies placed everywhere. Sarah fought to keep her out of balanced hormones at bay. She told herself she wouldn't let herself be the cliché expectant mother crying at every little thing, but seeing the lengths that her niece and friend went to made her well up with such love and pride.

"Like it? I… I… I…" Sarah babbled.

"…hate it, I knew it! Well don't blame me, it was all Sagira's idea!" Rory said jokingly defensive, pinning the blame on Sagira.

"Hey!" Sagira exclaimed, throwing a rubber duckie at Rory, which squeaked upon impact and fell to the floor.

Rory giggled and recanted, "I'm just kidding, well hopefully on the hating part too…"

Sarah gave her niece a knowing look and gathered the young girl into her arms in an all-encompassing hug. "I love it… so so much… thank you, Rory."

Rory smiled and squeezed Sarah as much as she could over the giant belly in between them. "You're welcome… But I couldn't have done it without Sagira."

Sarah released Rory and moved to Sagira. "How could I forget Sagira? The mastermind behind the whole operation!" Sarah said teasingly.

"Really, I don't know where you people get these kinds of ideas from…" Sagira said, rolling her eyes and laughing as she hugged Sarah.

Jareth had been standing back and watching his glowing wife embrace her friends, and as Sarah hugged Sagira, he moved to Rory and said, "Great job, Rory…"

Rory grinned and raised a hand to Jareth, "Thanks for the help, you rock…" Jareth stared at Rory's upheld palm, and then at Rory. Rory stared back at Jareth confusedly, and then she suddenly realized and started cracking up.

"You do know what a high five is, right?"

"A what?" Jareth responded, completely dumbfounded. Rory tried to catch her breath from laughing long enough to explain.

"It's just a gesture, you know? Like a thumbs up? Except when two people want to be like, 'Yeah!' they just go…" Rory took Jareth's wrist in her hand and slapped their two palms together.

Jareth watched her throughout the explanation and motion quizzically and said, "How very odd." Jareth gazed at his palm, then turned his hand upright as Rory had. "So if I want a 'highed five' do I just put my hand up like this and wait for you to slap my hand?"

Sarah and Sagira joined in Rory's giggles as Rory said, "Yes if you want a **high five**, you just raise your hand and usually the other person slaps it. And that's a high five."

Jareth looked over at Sagira and demanded, "You know what a high five is?"

Sagira laughed, but tried to contain it as best she could, "Yes, Sarah taught me some time ago to high five."

Jareth looked back at Sarah and said with feigned shock, "And I thought I knew you… You've been holding out on me this long?!"

Sarah laughed and walked back to Jareth and wrapped an arm around his waist, "I'm sorry, honey, I'm sorry I did not informed you in the ways of the high five… it was so thoughtless of me." Jareth grinned a toothy grin and kissed the top of her head, "Oh alright, I'll forgive you… what a pushover I am…" That admission from Jareth made all three women laugh, to which Jareth finally joined in.

***

Sarah was in heaven. She was sitting in a comfy, cozy yellow chair opening baby present after baby present. Everyone Jareth and Rory had invited came, all the other royalty in the Realm came and even their more mystical guests came. Hoggle came bearing jewels—of course—for Sarah and the baby (and even a bracelet for Rory), Ludo came bearing rocks—naturally—and had Sir Didymus and Ambrosius in tow. Sir Didymus made a sacred vow to protect Sarah and Jareth's child anywhere, anyplace, anytime—which coming from Didymus meant more than any physical gift he could've given. The Fireys came and performed a musical number as entertainment, and even the Wiseman came with some words of wisdom for Sarah.

"The future has a way of arriving unannounced. There are two things in life for which we are never truly prepared……" Unfortunately, he fell asleep, so that was the most that Sarah got from him. And as always, he really didn't make much sense, but his presence was greatly appreciated.

Sarah had opened all the gifts and was surrounded by boxes, wrapping paper, tissue paper, confetti, tinsel, ribbon and all other kind of decorative things. She looked like a craft store had thrown up on her. Then as Sarah was about to thank all her guests for attending her baby shower, Jareth stepped forward and cut her off.

"Now I have one last present for Sarah." Jareth announced his arms spread. Jareth moved his hands elaborately making an opaque crystal appear, and as he juggled it over his fingers and hands, the crystal grew a bit, and then he very gracefully placed it in Sarah's hands. Sarah gave Jareth a sweet smile, but then studied the crystal and said, "This is it?" All the guests laughed at Sarah's quick-witted response, and Jareth said, "Well try opening it, you silly girl…"

Sarah rolled her eyes and began gingerly squeezing and tugging at the crystal, until it popped, which made Sarah yelp in surprise, and everyone laughed again. Sarah looked inside the crystal and gasped and pulled out a shiny silver pendant on a chain. The guests 'oohed' and 'ahhed' at the exquisite piece of jewelry. Hoggle's eyes grew three times their normal size and his jaw fell to the floor.

Jareth approached Sarah with a warm smile and Sarah read aloud the inscription on the pendant:

"_I'll love you forever_ _I'll love you for always_"

The guests 'awed' at the romantic quote and some got teary eyed as Sarah and Jareth shared a sweet kiss. As Jareth was fastening the necklace around Sarah's neck, Sarah looked around at the people surrounding her and realized that one person was missing who hadn't been before.

While Sarah gazed at the pendant and took it out of the crystal, Rory had been reading the inscription over Sarah's shoulder. As she read the quote silently, something began stirring deep within her. A memory began to conjure itself up within Rory's head and Rory found herself separating herself away from the group. As she unconsciously made her way over to the food table and the punch bowl, she heard a kind voice reciting the familiar and similar lines in her head.

"_I'll love you forever,  
I'll like you for always,  
As long as I'm living  
my baby you'll be."_

The words were accompanied with a familiar smell, a floral yet sweet smell of lilacs, roses, and magnolias with touch of amber and vanilla. After the smell came the sight of wispy pieces of red hair lightly brushing a page with pictures and words. As all these different senses descended on her, Rory began to feel a little light headed and she gripped the edge of the table. Sarah saw this and slowly began to make her way away from the crowd, followed closely behind by Jareth, and said very softly, "Rory?"

Just as Sarah finished saying her name, Rory was overcome with the memories and emotions and suddenly began falling. Sarah screamed, "Rory!" and Jareth quickly leapt out to catch the falling Rory. Sarah grabbed the limp form lying in Jareth's arms, desperately trying to revive her, crying, "Rory… Rory? Sweetie, open your eyes, Rory…."

"She's fainted… I'll take her to her room, and try to make her comfortable." Jareth said, with a cool, but serious tone in his voice. Sarah nodded and breathed, "Okay…" and with that, Jareth disappeared with Rory in his arms. Sarah rubbed her belly nervously and turned back to her shocked and concerned looking guests. She took a deep breath and tried to play hostess as best she could, thanking everyone for coming, and throwing them out as politely as she could so she could go to her niece.

***

Jareth had brought Rory back up to her room and Gryphön had come to check Rory and assured Sarah and Jareth that with a cool compress, Rory should be revived within the hour. Both of them stayed by Rory's side, Jareth massaging Sarah's shoulders, trying to ease his tense and nervous wife.

Then, just as Gryphön had promised, within the hour, Rory's eyes fluttered open. Sarah and Jareth both sighed and Sarah leaned over and stroked Rory's forehead and hair.

"Hi, sweetie… how are you feeling?"

Rory let out a somewhat forced deep breath and said, "Fine, I guess… everything's still kinda fuzzy…"

"That's okay… just relax, regain your bearings…" Jareth said soothingly.

"You scared us, sweetie, fainting like that…" Sarah started.

"Seeing you fall like that was something else…" Jareth said.

The two began softly babbling about the whole fainting experience, when they were suddenly interrupted.

"Guys…." Rory suddenly said, softly, yet strongly.

"Yes?" both responded.

"I want to go home."

Jareth just stared, but Sarah was able to vocalize a, "What?"

"I want to go home." Rory repeated, "I want to go…..Aboveground."

**********************************************

Author's Note: dun dun DUN! Sorry to leave you guys on a cliffhanger after leaving you guys hanging for so long (ha ha ha… punny!), but I've been writing this chapter all into the night, give or take 2,000 words, and I have to run errands tomorrow so I need just the tiniest amount of energy reserved for tomorrow, but I promise, no I SWEAR that I will keep writing. I actually have my basic plan already mapped out, but it's just a matter of getting summary into chapter form. Hope you all enjoyed this though! All my love -xx


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